Here’s How RINGS OF POWER Ranked Over Labor Day Weekend

Published: September 9, 2024

Here’s How RINGS OF POWER Ranked Over Labor Day Weekend

By Movieguide® Contributor

Streaming data showed that THE LORD OF THE RINGS: RINGS OF POWER was the second most popular show over Labor Day weekend, falling only to Netflix’s WORST EX EVER.

RINGS OF POWER was streamed for 553.5 million minutes for an estimated 2.7 million viewers, per Variety. WORST EX EVER, meanwhile, ended with an estimated 2.8 million views. RINGS OF POWER Season 2 has gotten off to a strong start after receiving a rocky reception during its first go around.

Season 1 established the characters and the world before finally getting on with the story but lost a decent number of fans in the exposition. The final episodes of the season, however, were well received by fans, and Season 2 has shown to follow in their direction.

“Anytime you’re going to be doing something the second time, you have all the benefit of everything that you learned,” executive producer and writer J.D. Payne told The Hollywood Reporter last month. “Having done it the first time, frankly is a huge help.”

“The second season, we know our actors a lot better. We know their voices. We know how they live in these characters,” he continued. “So, I think we knew where the bull’s-eye was in terms of how to write to each of their strengths.”

While improving on the weaknesses of Season 1, Season 2 has also remained faithful to the positive aspects of the show, namely its commitment to Tolkien’s world and the strong Christian values he extolled throughout his story. A portion of Movieguide®’s review reads:

Episode Two of RINGS OF POWER: Season Two is extremely well-written. The episode expertly brings out strong Christian, moral themes. It promotes guarding against evil, temptation and gossip. It also extols wisdom, humility, repentance, forgiveness, fighting evil, and protecting life. There’s even a profound beautiful reference to God as the omniscient “Judge who sees all.” However, Episode Two of RINGS OF POWER: Season Two has some scary malevolent characters and brief but intense action violence. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children.

Only the first four episodes of Season 2 are currently available. The second half of the season will continue to be released through Oct. 3 with a new episode coming every Thursday.

Movieguide® previously reported:

THE RINGS OF POWER’s royal cast is opening up with Movieguide® about Season 2 and what they’re reminded of when it comes to leadership and sacrifice.

“You certainly think about leaders throughout history, you know? Be they queens, kings, prime ministers, presidents because they all are in this very unique position,” said Cynthia Addai-Robinson about her role as Queen Regent Miriel in the show. “Obviously, all very different contexts, different circumstances, but I always thought about, you know, that sort of top tier of society where it’s a very small circle and that that circle of concentration, it just shrinks and potentially it can be that question of like, ‘Do you have reliable people around you? Who can you trust?’”

“It’s lonely at the top. It can be very isolated, and so I often thought about those things, but there wasn’t necessarily tapping into any one figure or sort of using that in a way [of example],” she told Movieguide®. “It was more about…thinking through the idea about emotionally kind of what is that like what would that be like and obviously, many leaders throughout history have written their own autobiographies and have diaries and there’s plenty to mine from sort of like the thought process of various world leaders.”