Editor's note: The below contains spoilers for The Rings of Power

With The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season finale now streaming on Prime Video, earlier today I was able to speak with Morfydd Clark (Galadriel) about the big reveals in the episode. As you now know, the season finale reveals Halbrand (played by Charlie Vickers) to be none other than the Dark Lord Sauron. While you might think showrunners Patrick McKay and John D. Payne would hold back this information from Clark and Vickers until the very last second, it ends up they knew well in advance. Clark told me:

“So, I found out, Charlie found out that he was playing Sauron and I was told as when we were kind of filming our Numenor bits, but we weren't given episode eight till really late on. So we didn't know how she was going to find out and that was kind of frustrating and exciting. We also didn't know how close they would become as well. When I found out that Halbrand was Sauron, we didn't know how they'd feel after the battle in the Southlands and stuff. So it was kind of painful knowing more than Galadriel did, being like, "Oh no, you're going to be sad.’”

In addition, while many in The Rings of Power cast find out information script by script, that isn’t the case with Clark, and it’s probably because we all know that Galadriel will survive whatever is thrown at her in the series. When I asked how much she was told about the five-year plan of the series, Clark surprised me with this answer:

“I knew where the series, the fifth season was going to end, how that would happen. And I kind of knew what the sign posts of it all, but then it's the weaving to them that is kind of the bits that I kind of find out as we go, which is quite fun.”

It must be great to know where it’s all going, but also painful that she can’t talk about it with anyone other than showrunners Patrick McKay and John D. Payne.

In addition to what I’ve mentioned, during my spoiler filled interview, Clark talked about filming the creation of the rings of power, her reaction to the Balrog, what it was like filming the amazing action in episode six, why she loved being at San Diego Comic-Con, and a lot more.

Check out what she said below.

COLLIDER: How are you doing today?

MORFYDD CLARK: I'm very excited. Can't believe that the final episode's out and I was all really great, really happy that I was like, no, I don't have any secrets, but I now have season two secrets, never ends. How about you?

I have no season two secrets, but I am happy to talk about…I love the show and I'm happy we can actually talk some specifics. So, I'm going to start with the most important question up front. Do you feel like you post too much on Instagram?

CLARK: Me? I don't think I do. I think I've posted more than I have ever in the last two months and I feel that I've posted way too much, but I don't think I actually post very much. But I get huge anxiety and I post picture of my dog, which couldn't offend anyone.

I post pictures of our cats all the time. I'm making a joke about this. But when you were cast, how much did they tell you about the five-year plan and everything that was going to happen? Because obviously you don't die, it's guaranteed that you will survive.

CLARK: Yeah, I knew where the series, the fifth season was going to end, how that would happen. And I kind of knew what the sign posts of it all, but then it's the weaving to them that is kind of the bits that I kind of find out as we go, which is quite fun.

So how early on did you know about episode eight and who was going to be Sauron and all the stuff that was revealed?

CLARK: So, I found out, Charlie found out that he was playing Sauron and I was told as when we were kind of filming our Numenor bits, but we weren't given episode eight till really late on. So we didn't know how she was going to find out and that was kind of frustrating and exciting. And we also didn't know how close they would become as well. When I found out that Halbrand was Sauron, we didn't know how they'd feel after the battle in the Southlands and stuff. So it was kind of painful knowing more than Galadriel did, being like, "Oh no, you're going to be sad."

Would you have preferred to find out as an actor when you were actually filming episode eight or were you happy to have that knowledge?

CLARK: I like to have as much information as I can. And just because also there was bits before that kind of needed to happen. I think it just depends from job to job. I think it often comes more that that's useful for the director, I'd say. And I kind of will be like do what they want me to do, quite like being directed. But it was exciting not knowing how it would come about. And we did film it quite quickly after having the scripts, so there was a kind of whirlwind feeling to it, which was quite nice to have.

There is stuff in episode eight that takes place with people from episode one. Did you film all the episode eight stuff for episode eight or did you film any of episode eight back when you made episode one?

CLARK: No, we didn't. So Will Fletcher, who plays Finrod had to come back to New Zealand. And all of the cast, we'd been there for over a year by this point without going home, without seeing people. And so when we all heard that Will was coming back, that was such rejoicing. It was so exciting for all of us. And Will had no idea as well. Yeah, so that was really cool.

What was your reaction when you saw episode seven and the Balrog in the mine?

CLARK: Yes. I find Durin and Elrond's relationship very emotional and actually Disa as well, that trio I just adore. And I just felt so sad for Durin, he's under the shadow of his father and I think Owain's playing that so wonderfully, but also there's just such tragedy to it. They were trying to do something so good, now this has happened. The Balrog just so scary.

The Balrog looked amazing.

CLARK: Yeah.

I definitely want to ask you about episode six because the level of action in that episode it rivals movies. The whole show rivals a movie, but it was spectacular. What was it actually filming that stuff and because it was so well done?

CLARK: So Charlotte, we had amazing directors on all of this, but Charlotte did episode six and she's just fantastic. She is the calm in the storm, which is what you need when you're doing all of that stuff because there is a chaos to it. First of all, you just have so many people on set and also quite a lot of them dressed as orcs with limited vision because of all their prosthetics. So there's just…and lots of weapons and then horses. So to feel this kind of beacon of calm in the center, which Charlotte is, is just wonderful.

But that was one of the most exciting things I've ever done because of the people we were working with. There were so many stunties on set and then all these trick riders and watching the trick riders do their stuff, I may as well have been watching magic because it seems so impossible. And then I think that I was so excited watching it, I was holding my breath. Also I just love those episodes in series when characters that you didn't expect to meet come together and I think that was handled really wonderfully. Yeah, no, so we're all so proud and excited about episode six.

As well you should be. How much have you been paying attention online to what fans have been saying about who The Stranger might be and who is Sauron or have you been avoiding all that?

CLARK: So I get fed it by my friends and family, so I kind of know everything that's going on, to protect me from a certain kind of quite nasty things. And I just love it. As a viewer myself, I love to discuss and kind of think where stuff is going and try to pick stuff apart in a healthy way. And to be part of something that has made other people do that has been a joy and also they've just cracked me up and I'm actually really excited to see how people react tomorrow because Halbrand's become very special to quite a lot of people.

What I loved was the beginning of episode eight when it's revealed that The Stranger will be Sauron because you don't see that coming. You've seen the episode, I'm assuming.

CLARK: Yes, I saw it today.

So did you know about that aspect of the storyline? Because I've been told a lot of the cast doesn't get scenes that they're not in.

CLARK: For episode eight I didn't read other people's storyline because I wanted it to be a surprise. So that was really exciting and because also other people weren't getting everyone's storyline. It was quite nice that everyone was kind of separate. I just thought that the way they did that with the mystics and everyone was just incredible. And the color palette as well, that it went from kind of these turquoisey greens to then all that fire and then all those embers. It was so beautiful and I cried loads. So I'm glad that I didn't know what was happening because I felt like a viewer watching it and I was like, no.

Right. What's funny is going to be all the people that are watching it who have no idea what's coming and that's just a nice red herring. And then obviously, well you know.

CLARK: Yeah.

Well one of the things that was also cool in episode eight is you get to create the rings.

CLARK: Yes.

Which is a really big deal. So can you talk about filming that sequence?

CLARK: Well we actually filmed those scenes with me, Rob and Charlie Edwards last. That was the last two weeks of filming. And the set reflected the world that the elves were in at that point. We were running out of time, it was manic, not running out of time, but it was kind of the final push. And so we did feel like that as well. It was like we have to complete this, we have to do this. So it was quite fun and it was also just really cool to be in the forge, but then also to watch it, because obviously there wasn't molten metal, so there was just lots of us just staring at a spinning bowl. So seeing all of that was so cool. And again, I hadn't really acted with Celebrimbor and just as a nerd, like that being Elrond, Celebrimbor and Galadriel, I was like, yeah, exciting.

How much have you studied, and I don't know if you have, but how much have you studied the second age and Galadriel and her history? So when you go to a convention and you get asked really nerdy questions, you can answer it. And how much do you sort of accept, I'm never going to know as much as the hardcore fans and there's just nothing I can do?

CLARK: Well, I would say my experience of fans of Tolkien is that nobody thinks they know it all, which is what's so incredible about his stuff because it was so extensive and also can be kind of philosophically explored. There's also moments where he rewrote stuff slightly differently. And so I think on the whole, there's a lot of humility to people who know a lot about Tolkien because they know that there's someone else who knows more about it than them. And I kind of just feel like I'm on a journey still. I will never know it all. And I'm now kind of, San Diego Comic-Con was one of the best parts of the whole press tour for me. Got to meet so many people who kind of just so knowledgeable and lots of whom who I had followed on TikTok to learn. So I kind of feel proud when I know stuff and ready to learn stuff.

When you think back on the eight episodes of the first season, which scene or sequence ended up being the real pain in the ass and why?

CLARK: It's probably the raft. We kept going back to the raft, as you see in episode eight, where they were like, "Guess what?" Remember me and Charlie reading it and being like, "No." Because you can't actually come off the raft in between takes. You're just stuck there. So everything just takes ages because crew has to be ferried over to you on the still rafts. You are quite cold. But it's still, to be honest, it was all fun. The raft was still really exciting because we got to do the storm sequence in it.

Also probably the first scene of all the elves in the northern waste. I'd never worked with fake snow before and it's actually potato starch and they were blowing it at us through these fans. And you don't notice at the time, but when it gets wet, it expands. And all of us are squeezing potato starch out of our eyeballs for like days. So that was quite intense because also they were like, elves will keep their eyes open in a storm. You're an elf, not a human. We're there walking into it like, "Ah."

I've been on some sets where everyone is wearing a mask except for the actors and I'm like, oh, this is not good as an actor because if everyone else is wearing a mask, the actors should probably be wearing a mask. But you can't put the lines on your face between takes.

CLARK: No. No.

So it's a whole thing. I feel terrible. But anyways.

CLARK: It's also when you have loads of riding lessons with a helmet and all the gear and then they're like, "Now you're going to be a big wig and a dress. And no helmet." You're like, "I see."

I'm just going to say thank you so much.

CLARK: Thank you.

And I really do love the show and I can't wait to see season two.

The Rings of Power streams on Prime Video.