Charlie Vickers

Charlie Vickers was born in St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia. He grew up in Geelong. He studied for an arts degree at RMIT University in Melbourne and took part in amateur theatre, including performing in Queen’s College MADS productions as the Judge in Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd and Basil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers, before undertaking an audition in Sydney for a UK-based drama school. Vickers moved to London, England to attend the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, where he met his wife, actress Georgie Oulton. He graduated in 2018. In 2019, Vickers was cast in the main role of Sauron in the J. R. R. Tolkien-based Amazon television series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, first appearing in episode 2 as his human disguise Halbrand. Vickers has said he was unaware he was playing Sauron until filming the third episode. To immerse himself in the part, Vickers went hiking for five days in the Tongariro National Park, New Zealand. To perform the underwater scenes, Vickers took up freediving. Vickers is a keen runner, having completed several triathlons and regularly done 5–10 km (3.1–6.2 mi) runs several times a week.