Is Ciáran Hinds playing Saruman in The Rings of Power season 2?

Watch: Co-showrunner Patrick McKay and actor Daniel Weyman discuss the Istari in Rings of Power

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has many secrets to impart on viewers, and it has a tendency to have some of JRR Tolkien's most famous characters hide in plain sight like Sauron, who was revealed to be Halbrand at the end of season one, but who else could be revealed?

Prime Video's adaptation of Tolkien's work has explored several aspects of the author's lore in season one, including the emergence of the Istari in Middle Earth. The powerful beings are part of the Order of Wizards who present themselves in human form and were sent to aid the people of Middle Earth against the threat of Sauron, there are five in the novels but three viewers will know well — Gandalf, Saruman and Radagast.

Daniel Weyman's The Stranger appears to be one of the members of the Istari, with many theorising that he is Gandalf, but with the emergence of a new Dark Wizard in season 2 played by Ciáran Hinds the question is will we see Saruman? Showrunner Patrick McKay teases to Yahoo UK there will be a number of unexpected twists when it comes to the Istari.

"The Stranger's journeys in the East have many twists and turns yet to come I will say," McKay says. "There is, as you've seen in the first three episodes, another Istari in the East who appears to have been corrupted by power or turned to evil.

"Their interconnection, and their relationship, is a story we're really excited about."

While McKay admits he "shouldn't say" if Saruman specifically appears in the show's second season, he does say that "Ciáran Hinds is amazing" in the role of the Dark Wizard. The creative team may be keeping a tight lip on the matter but it doesn't seem far-fetched to believe that Hinds is playing Saruman, as the wizard is the one in Tolkien lore to be corrupted by power and join Sauron's side.

Read more: Rings of Power

• The Rings of Power cast tease Sauron and Adar's rivalry and season 2 surprises

• Galadriel and Sauron's story is 'far from over' in The Rings of Power

• The Rings of Power's Rory Kinnear 'put aside' fan expectations to play Tom Bombadil

Questions of course are still circulating around The Stranger's true identity, and Weyman shares insight into his character arc in season 2 by revealing to Yahoo UK that he will face a difficult moral conundrum: "He's gotta choose where to pin his colours, when various darknesses arise."

"One of the questions for people, when they look at The Stranger is when will he understand what happened before Middle Earth, and when he does, when that comes to him, how does that impact on the way he goes forward in Middle Earth?" The actor goes on.

"I think by season 2 that largely hasn't happened yet and interacting with characters like Tom Bombadil, who, by his very nature is eternal and timeless, [and] his timeless quality is in all directions, so his knowledge of not only Middle Earth but the universe is so vast.

"That is a massive change for The Stranger to come into. Aside from the Mystics at the end of [season 1] episode 8, where there was a moment where he saw something in one of their eyes which made him think, 'are we the same sort of thing?

"With Tom, not only is he is so powerful and so complete —and The Stranger is not— [and] his speed, his dexterity is so vast that The Stranger is having to play so much catch up and is always feeling like he's on the back foot.

"That's gonna hopefully lead to some pretty exciting things and some very scary choices for The Stranger."

Will those choices lead him to good or evil? From what we've seen of the character so far it is expected that The Stranger will choose the former, but his grey clothing and love of halflings may well prove to be a red herring to make viewers believe he is Gandalf when it could be revealed that he is not.

At the very least it won't be long before viewers know for sure, as co-showrunner JD Payne assures Yahoo UK that "by the end of season 2" fans will have the answer.

The first three episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 are out now, and episodes will continue to air every Thursday on Prime Video.