Yes, he left a blank-enough canvas to fill in the gaps between the 1st & 3rd Age, which he truly established...
... They made Sauron to be a slightly less completed character in ROP, but probably due to not having rights to the 1st Age material at all... that's why they made him out to be a sorcerer "only", and moved his "kingdom" to the South, as they couldn't refer to the lands that were lost after Morgoth got overthrown...
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