Funko is releasing a Sauron figure in its Premium range, standing nearly 16 cm tall on a pedestal shaped like the One Ring. And that pedestal features the Ring’s inscriptions in glow-in-the-dark detailing. Release is scheduled for late 2026, starting at €19.99.
Sauron – POP #2161, a Premium figure standing nearly 16 cm tall
The official name is Pop! Premium Sauron with Weapon, and the format is anything but standard: 15.7 cm tall, roughly a head and a half taller than a regular POP. The Dark Lord is holding his weapon and stands on a circular base designed to resemble the One Ring.
Funko’s retail price is $19.99, with French retailers listing it from €19.99. The figure has been announced with no exclusive status and no Chase variant.
The real highlight: an inscription that only appears with heat
The official description mentions “glow-in-the-dark details and inscriptions”. Those final three words are what make the figure particularly interesting.
In The Fellowship of the Ring, Gandalf throws the Ring into the fire at Bag End. The gold remains cool, but Elvish characters appear across its surface, glowing red and written in the Black Speech of Mordor. It is the scene that transforms an ordinary-looking piece of jewelry into the most dangerous object in Middle-earth, and probably one of the most reproduced images in modern fantasy.
An inscription that only appears under certain conditions and remains invisible the rest of the time is almost the perfect candidate for a glow-in-the-dark treatment. On most POP figures, glow-in-the-dark is simply a selling point. Here, it is a faithful translation of how the object actually works in the story.
In practical terms, the base looks like a golden ring in normal light. Turn off the lights, and the inscriptions appear. Exactly as the Ring does in the story.
Pop! Premium, a format with real presence
This release belongs to the Pop! Premium range, which stands out through its larger size, more elaborate base and price point of around €20.
Funko is using this format more and more for characters that simply do not work as well as 10 cm figures on flat bases. Sauron fits that category perfectly: the character is defined by his imposing stature and by the object at the heart of his story, two things that a standard POP cannot really capture.
A much larger Middle-earth wave
This Sauron is not being released on his own. He is part of a ten-item Middle-earth lineup announced for the end of the year, including three other releases from The Lord of the Rings:
- a Balrog in Super format with special effects,
- Barad-dûr in the Town range, also glow-in-the-dark,
- Samwise Gamgee in standard format.
They are joined by six releases from The Hobbit, including a 17.3 cm metallic Smaug in Deluxe format. Two glow-in-the-dark pieces in the same lineup, both directly connected to Sauron: the tower and its master. Funko clearly designed this batch as a display set rather than simply a list of characters.
The best Lord of the Rings POP in a long time
For a license that already has dozens of releases, there needs to be a good reason to make another Sauron. This one has one, and it comes down to a detail that many product lines would have treated as nothing more than gold paint.
The only remaining question is how well the glow-in-the-dark effect will be executed, as quality can vary significantly from one POP to another. If the lettering is sharp, this is the figure to secure from the wave. Pre-orders are open, with release scheduled for November or December 2026 depending on the source.
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