“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” has made its debut and the cast is finally able to talk about the years-long effort. The Amazon Prime Video series, based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s writings, introduces new characters and shows the origins of others. Actor Owain Arthur says it took three hours each day to put on his makeup and prosthetics, while actor Ismael Cruz Córdova felt a pride that she and the cast were at one point the only TV actors working during the pandemic. Markella Kavenagh hopes the series inspires kids to read more Tolkien.