| Season: | 1 |
| Episode: | 6 |
| Director: | Charlotte Brändström |
| Photographer: | Alex Disenhof |
| Editor: | Jochen FitzHerbert |
| Length: | 69 minutes |
| Guests Title: | Cast |
| Guests: |
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| Prev: | Partings |
| Next: | The Eye |
| Season Article: | The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 1 |
| Episode List: | List of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power episodes |
"Udûn" is the sixth episode of the first season of the American fantasy television series . Based on J. R. R. Tolkien's history of Middle-earth, primarily material from the appendices of the novel The Lord of the Rings, it is set thousands of years before the novel in the Second Age of Middle-earth and depicts a battle in the Southlands. The episode was written by Nicholas Adams, Justin Doble, and showrunners J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay, and directed by Charlotte Brändström.
The series was ordered in November 2017. Payne and McKay were set to develop it in July 2018. Filming for the first season took place in New Zealand, and work on episodes beyond the first two began in January 2021. Brändström was revealed to be directing two episodes of the season that May, including the sixth. Production wrapped for the season in August 2021.
"Udûn" premiered on the streaming service Amazon Prime Video on September 30, 2022. It was estimated to have high viewership and received generally positive reviews. The episode received several awards and nominations, including a Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Award nomination for its sound editing.
An army of Orcs led by Adar find the tower of Ostirith abandoned. While they search for the humans, Arondir triggers a booby-trap that collapses the tower on many of the Orcs. The humans, who had moved down the valley back to Tirharad, cheer as the tower falls. Meanwhile, Galadriel, Queen Regent Míriel, and soldiers from Númenór make their way towards the Southlands by ship. Galadriel meets Isildur and learns from his father, Elendil, that Isildur's mother drowned.
Arondir attempts to destroy the broken sword but is unable to with conventional tools. He tells Bronwyn that he is going to hide it as Theo watches on. Arondir helps the town prepare for the next assault. He professes his love to Bronwyn and promises a life together with her and Theo after the battle. That night, the Orcs enter Tirharad. The townspeople trap them in the center of the village and are victorious, but soon realize that many of the enemies they just killed were the humans who had joined Adar.
Orc archers shoot at the townsfolk, killing and wounding many. Bronwyn is hit in the shoulder; Theo and Arondir cauterize her wound. Adar demands the broken sword and Arondir attempts to negotiate, but the Orcs continue to kill people. Theo reveals the sword and gives it to Adar when Bronwyn is threatened. Adar orders the rest of the humans to be killed, but the Númenóreans arrive on horseback and kill or capture the remaining Orcs. Adar is captured by Galadriel and Halbrand as he attempts to escape.
Galadriel interrogates Adar, discovering that he is an Elf who was corrupted by the first Dark Lord, Morgoth, and turned into one of the first Orcs. He claims to have killed the second Dark Lord, Sauron, and is now focused on creating a home for all Orcs. Halbrand is hailed as the King of the Southlands and the Númenóreans celebrate their victory. Theo realizes that the broken sword is missing as Waldreg uses it to unlock the dam beside Ostirith. Water rushes into the Orcs' tunnels which lead to the mountain Orodruin. The water enters a lava chamber beneath the mountain and the resulting pressure causes an eruption that spews lava, ash, and smoke over the Southlands.
Amazon acquired the global television rights for J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings in November 2017. The company's streaming service, Amazon Prime Video, ordered a series based on the novel and its appendices to be produced by Amazon Studios in association with New Line Cinema. It was later titled . Amazon hired J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay to develop the series and serve as showrunners in July 2018. Justin Doble had joined the series as a writer by July 2019, and Charlotte Brändström was revealed to be directing two episodes of the first season in May 2021. The series was originally expected to be a continuation of Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies, but Amazon later clarified that their deal with the Tolkien Estate required them to keep the series distinct from Jackson's films. Despite this, the showrunners intended for it to be visually consistent with the films. Amazon confirmed in September 2019 that filming for the first season would take place in New Zealand, where Jackson's films were made.
The series is set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Because Amazon did not acquire the rights to Tolkien's other works where the First and Second Ages are primarily explored, the writers had to identify references to the Second Age in The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and its appendices, and create a story that bridged those passages. The first season focuses on introducing the setting and major heroic characters to the audience. Written by Nicholas Adams, Doble, Payne, and McKay, and directed by Brändström, the sixth episode is titled "Udûn".
The series' cast includes Cynthia Addai-Robinson as Míriel, Maxim Baldry as Isildur, Nazanin Boniadi as Bronwyn, Morfydd Clark as Galadriel, Ismael Cruz Córdova as Arondir, Tyroe Muhafidin as Theo, Lloyd Owen as Elendil, and Charlie Vickers as Halbrand. Also starring in the episode are Joseph Mawle as Adar, Geoff Morrell as Waldreg, Peter Tait as Tredwill, Anthony Crum as Ontamo, Alex Tarrant as Valandil, and Phil Grieve as Bazur.
Filming primarily took place at Kumeu Film Studios and Auckland Film Studios in Auckland, under the working title Untitled Amazon Project or simply UAP. Production on episodes beyond the first two began in January 2021, and Brändström was in New Zealand for production in May. Filming for the season wrapped on August 2.
Visual effects for the episode were created by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Wētā FX, Method Studios, Rodeo FX, DNEG, Rising Sun Pictures, Cause and FX, Atomic Arts, and Cantina Creative.
A soundtrack album featuring composer Bear McCreary's score for the episode was released digitally on Amazon Music on September 29, 2022. McCreary said the album contained "virtually every second of score" from the episode. It was added to other music streaming services after the full first season was released. A CD featuring the music from the episode is included in a limited edition box set collection of the first season's music from Mondo and Amazon Music. The box set was released on April 26, 2024, and includes a journal written by McCreary which details the creation of the episode's score. All music composed by Bear McCreary:
"Udûn" premiered on Prime Video in the United States on September 30, 2022. It was released at the same time around the world, in more than 240 countries and territories. For two weeks leading up to the premiere of the second season on August 29, 2024, the episode was made available for free on the streaming service Samsung TV Plus in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Germany.
Whip Media, which tracks viewership data for the 21 million worldwide users of its TV Time app, calculated that for the week ending October 2, two days after the episode's debut, The Rings of Power was the second-highest original streaming series for U.S. viewership behind Disney+'s . This was a move up from being fifth-place the week before. Nielsen Media Research, which records streaming viewership on U.S. television screens, estimated that the series was watched for 966 million minutes during the week ending October 2. This put the series in third-place on the company's list of top streaming series and films, behind only Netflix's Cobra Kai and Disney+'s Hocus Pocus 2. Parrot Analytics determines audience "demand expressions" based on various data sources, including social media activity and comments on rating platforms. During the week ending October 7, the company calculated that The Rings of Power was 30.3 times more in demand than the average U.S. streaming series, moving it up to seventh on the company's top 10 list for the week.
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 87% of 30 critics gave the episode a positive review, with an average score of 8.3/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Focusing on a battle for the Southlands, 'Udûn' features some of the most rollicking action ever witnessed on television and delivers The Rings of Power most conventionally satisfying episode yet."[1]
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Reel Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Broadcast Long Form Dialogue / ADR | Robby Stambler, Damian Del Borrello, Stefanie Ng, Ailene Roberts, Ray Beentjes, and Gareth Van Niekirk | [2] | ||
| Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Broadcast Long Form Effects / Foley | Damian Del Borrello, Robby Stambler, Paula Fairfield, James Miller, Chris Terhune, Gareth Van Niekerk, Ryan A. Sullivan, Goeun Everett, Richard Wills, Jonathan Bruce, and Amy Barber | ||||
| Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One-Hour) | Robert Stambler, Damian Del Borrello, Ailene Roberts, Stefanie Ng, Paula Fairfield, Chris Terhune, James Miller, Michael Baber, Jason Smith, Amy Barber, and Jonathan Bruce | [3] | ||
| Visual Effects Society Awards | Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode | Jason Smith, Ron Ames, Nigel Sumner, Tom Proctor, and Dean Clarke | [4] [5] | ||
| Outstanding Effects Simulations in an Episode, Commercial, or Real-Time Project | Kurt Debens, Hamish Bell, Robert Kelly, and Gabriel Roccisano (for Volcano Destruction) | ||||
| Rick Hankins, Aron Bonar, Branko Grujcic, and Laurent Kermel (for Water and Magma) | |||||
| Outstanding Compositing and Lighting in an Episode | Sornalingam P, Ian Copeland, Nessa Mingfang Zhang, and Yuvaraj S (for Tirharad Cavalry Charge) |
An episode of the official aftershow Deadline's Inside the Ring: LOTR: The Rings of Power for "Udûn" was released on October 1, 2022. Hosted by Deadline Hollywood Dominic Patten and Anthony D'Alessandro, it features exclusive "footage and insights" for the episode, plus interviews with cast members Owen, Cordova, Clark, Vickers, Muhafidin, Baldry, and Boniadi as well as Brändström, Doble, and McCreary. On October 14, The Official The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Podcast was released on Amazon Music. Hosted by actress Felicia Day, the sixth episode is dedicated to "Udûn" and features Córdova, Payne, and McKay. On November 21, a bonus segment featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the episode was added to Prime Video's X-Ray feature as part of a series titled "The Making of The Rings of Power".