Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ TV Series: Here’s everything we know

Fantasy / By / 6 minutes of reading

*Keep an eye on this page as it will be updated with new information as it is released.

**Updated August 3, 2021

After the conclusion of the Hobbit trilogies, it was uncertain if there would ever be a return to Middle-Earth on screen. Then on November 13, 2017, Amazon made a stunning announcement.

Amazon today announced it has acquired the global television rights to The Lord of the Rings, based on the celebrated fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien, with a multi-season commitment. The upcoming Amazon Prime Original will be produced by Amazon Studios in cooperation with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line Cinema, a division of Warner Bros. Entertainment.

Since the announcement was made, there have been a variety of rumors and speculations. To help you sort through them all, here is a helpful guide to what we know about this upcoming adaptation of the world of Catholic author, J.R.R. Tolkien.

On July 27, 2019, Amazon released the following video that highlights the production team:

What company is producing it?

As mentioned above, it is a collaborative project involving Amazon Studios, the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line Cinema (a division of Warner Bros. Entertainment).

It is reported that Amazon paid $250 million for the production rights.

Who is writing the script?

Amazon announced in 2018 that JD Payne and Patrick McKay would be writing the initial script. Their previous writing credits include Star Trek 4 for Paramount and adapting the upcoming Jungle Cruise for Disney.

“The rich world that J.R.R. Tolkien created is filled with majesty and heart, wisdom and complexity,” the writing duo said in a statement. “We are absolutely thrilled to be partnering with Amazon to bring it to life anew. We feel like Frodo, setting out from the Shire, with a great responsibility in our care — it is the beginning of the adventure of a lifetime.” 

On May 21, 2019, Variety reported that Game of Thrones writer Bryan Cogman would serve as a “consultant” to the Lord of the Rings series at Amazon. This follows an announcement in September that Cogman “has signed an overall deal with Amazon Studios. Under the pact, Cogman will work exclusively with the Amazon Studios team on creating original television series for premiere globally on Amazon Prime Video.”

Cogman worked on the first season as a consultant, but has since departed from the production.

Who is the director?

In July 2019, J.A. Bayona was announced as the director of the first two episodes of the series. Indiewire explains:

“The Orphanage” and “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” director J.A. Bayona is the streaming service’s choice to direct the first two episodes of its massive new Middle Earth series…This won’t be the first time that Bayona helps get a series off the ground, having previously done the same for the first two episodes of the Showtime drama “Penny Dreadful.”

Deadline reports Bayona’s comments on the announcement:

“J.R.R. Tolkien created one of the most extraordinary and inspiring stories of all time, and as a lifelong fan it is an honor and a joy to join this amazing team,” said Bayona. “I can’t wait to take audiences around the world to Middle-earth and have them discover the wonders of the Second Age, with a never before seen story.”

Peter Jackson has said he will NOT be involved with the project.

Additional directors include, Wayne Che Yip, who will direct four episodes and Charlotte Brändström, with two episodes confirmed.

Which actors have been cast to star in the show?

There are a slew of confirmed actors, including: Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Maxim Baldry, Nazanin Boniadi, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Charles Edwards, Trystan Gravelle, Sir Lenny Henry, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Lloyd Owen, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker, Daniel Weyman, and Sara Zwangobani.

What is the plot of the TV show?

In the initial statement released by Amazon, they refer to acquiring the television rights to the “Lord of the Rings.” It is believed that they will make use of the appendices of the Lord of the Rings to create a “prequel” in the same “world” as the movies that were produced by New Line Cinema.

In 2019 a Twitter and Facebook account for the TV Show has been slowly revealing clues, including a map of Middle-Earth featuring an island known as Númenor. The social media accounts also revealed that the show would take place in the “Second Age” of Tolkien’s saga.

Portions of this time period were portrayed in the prologue that was created for the Fellowship of the Ring movie. Events that occurred in the Second Age include the forging of the One Ring by Sauron and the battle where Isildur cuts the One Ring from Sauron’s finger. It is a lengthy period in the history of Middle-Earth and features many key events.

Furthermore, it is possible that portions of the First Age will be shown in a prologue to the series based on an image released by Amazon.

And a much longer discussion by Dr. Corey Olsen

On January 12, 2021, Amazon also released the “official synopsis.”

Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness. Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.

When and where will it be filmed?

The TV show began filming in 2020 in New Zealand.

When will it be released?

The agreement is believed to include at least five seasons, which will be available on Amazon Prime starting on September 2, 2022.

According to Tolkien scholar Tom Shippey, who was working on the production, there will be 20 episodes in the first season.

Will there be nudity?

Since there are many invovled with the production who were on the production team of The Game of Thrones, it was speculated that this would result in a similar style of nudity/sex.

Recent reports from TheOneRing.Net suggest that there may be nudity, but not sexually suggestive.

Nudity is sparse and not sexualized— contrary to earlier concerns: but rather this artistic choice represents very dark thematic material suggestive of concentration camp-type visuals of victims, a harrowing portrayal of the corruption of the Elves by dark powers to ultimately become Orcs.

Philip Kosloski

Philip Kosloski is the founder of Voyage Comics & Publishing and the writer and creator of the comic book series, Finnian and the Seven Mountains.

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