What Are The Rings of Power Season 2’s Barrow-wights (And How Are They Different Than Ringwraiths)?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 4, “Eldest.”

Barrow-wights make their live-action debut in the latest episode of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, “Eldest.” So, what exactly are The Rings of Power Season 2’s Barrow-wights, and how are they different to Ringwraiths?

The Rings of Power Season 2’s Barrow-wights, Explained

Elrond, Galadriel, and their Elf companions run afoul of Barrow-wights midway through “Eldest,” during a detour through the Old Forest. The spectral skeletons quickly prove a handful, shrugging off conventional attacks while simultaneously lashing out with their animate chains. Fortunately, Elrond soon remembers the Barrow-wights’ one weakness: they’re vulnerable to the swords they were buried with when they died as mortal men. Cracking open the surrounding tombs, the Elves rustle up a batch of these special blades and dispatch the wights with ease.

How much of this is culled from J.R.R. Tolkien’s original Lord of the Rings canon? A decent chunk. True, there’s no account of Elrond and Galadriel squaring off against Barrow-wights in The Lord of the Rings or associated works, however, the Rings of Power‘s wights are still fairly book-accurate. As in the books, they’re skeletal phantoms that skulk around Eriador (including the Barrow-downs). The show’s depiction of the Barrow-wights wrapping their prey in chains also has its roots in Tolkien’s writing (although it’s portrayed much more dynamically in live action).

That said, there are also some notable differences between Tolkien’s Barrow-wights and those seen in The Rings of Power. For one thing, the Barrow-wights in the book hypnotize their victims with their chanting; in the show, their chanting doesn’t produce similar effects. And all that stuff about wights’ own swords being their Kryptonite? That’s the invention of Season 2, Episode 4 scribe Glenise Mullins, not Tolkien. His wights are done in by sunlight and Tom Bombadil’s magical singing, instead.

Related: The Rings of Power Season 2: What Is a Vala in The Lord of the Rings Canon?

What’s the Difference Between Barrow-wights and Ringwraiths?

Right now, you’re probably thinking that Barrow-wights sound a lot like another group of Lord of the Rings baddies, the Ringwraiths – and you’re not wrong. Both are undead-like creatures who serve Sauron. The specifics involved with each party are very different, though. For starters, Barrow-wights have a visible form, whereas Ringwraiths are completely invisible (save the Witch-King’s glowing eyes in The Return of the King novel). Plus, the Ringwraiths’ are the result of Men wearing their Rings of Power too long; there’s zero indication the Barrow-wights ever got their hands on such fingerwear. The Ringwraiths aren’t vulnerable to sunlight either.

Related: Is Shelob in The Rings of Power Season 2?

That doesn’t mean there’s no connection between the Barrow-wights and the Ringwraiths, though. The Lord of the Rings appendices note that the Witch-King ordered the wights to set up shop in the Barrow-downs in first place. Did the Witch-King “create” the Barrow-wights? That’s unclear. All we know is he commanded them, either through his connection to Sauron or his own sorcery. If Tolkien ever settled on a definitive origin for the Barrow-wights, he didn’t share it. But one thing is certain: Tolkien drew a distinct line between wights and wraiths!

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 is currently streaming on Prime Video, with new episodes dropping Thursdays.