Amazon's "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" Trailer Released

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Amazon Sets "The Lord of the Rings" TV Series with Multi-Season Commitment
by Nellie Andreeva
November 13, 2017


In its quest to launch a hit fantasy series of the caliber of "Game of Thrones", Amazon has closed a massive deal, said to be close to $250 million, to acquire the global TV rights to "The Lord of the Rings", based on the fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien.

The streaming service has given a multi-season commitment to the series in the pact, which also includes a potential spin-off series.





Amazon's series, which will be a prequel to Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, 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, which produced the hugely successful LOTR movie franchise.

No details about the deal were disclosed but is believed to be in the $200 – $250 million range. That is just for the rights, before any costs for development, talent and production, in proposition whose finances industry observers called “insane.”





“The Lord of the Rings is a cultural phenomenon that has captured the imagination of generations of fans through literature and the big screen,” said Sharon Tal Yguado, Head of Scripted Series, Amazon Studios.

“We are honored to be working with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line on this exciting collaboration for television and are thrilled to be taking The Lord of the Rings fans on a new epic journey in Middle Earth.”





“We are delighted that Amazon, with its longstanding commitment to literature, is the home of the first-ever multi-season television series for The Lord of the Rings,” said Matt Galsor, a representative for the Tolkien Estate and Trust and HarperCollins.

“Sharon and the team at Amazon Studios have exceptional ideas to bring to the screen previously unexplored stories based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s original writings.”

http://deadline.com/2017/11/amazon-t...nt-1202207065/

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Amazon’s "Lord of the Rings" Series Reportedly to Cost $500 Million
by James Hibberd
March 19, 2018


And you thought "Game of Thrones" looked expensive. Amazon’s "Lord of the Rings" prequel will cost the company an estimated $500 million, according to Reuters.

The rights alone to a piece of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy franchise apparently cost the company $250 million. Amazon has made a deal for two seasons, and the production and marketing costs for both should total around another $250 million. This would make the LOTR project easily the most expensive TV series ever made.

In fact, it’s more than it cost Peter Jackson to make all three movies in his Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings trilogy, at least, before their marketing costs (according to Box Office Mojo).




And the Amazon drama will have the additional challenge — some might say benefit — of not being a reboot of the familiar tale of Frodo and the One Ring. Instead, the Amazon project will be a prequel series based on Tolkien’s works with an as-yet-unreleased story line.

By comparison, HBO spends about $15 million per episode on GoT at this point — probably a bit more for the upcoming final season — plus marketing costs.

http://ew.com/tv/2018/03/19/amazon-l...ost-expensive/

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"Lord of the Rings" Series Gets Early Season 2 Renewal at Amazon
by Nellie Andreeva
November 18, 2019


As pre-production on Amazon Studios’ high-profile "Lord of the Rings" TV series is gearing up in New Zealand, the streamer is moving ahead with an early Season 2 renewal for the sprawling adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy novels.

As part of that, Amazon has commissioned the reassembling of the writers room to break the second season. Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke confirmed to Deadline the news that the second season is already in the works during the company’s holiday party Sunday night at the H Club in Hollywood.

https://deadline.com/2019/11/the-lor...ed-1202788730/

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Amazon's "The Lord of the Rings" to Cost $465M for Just One Season
by James Hibberd
April 16, 2021


Amazon Studios' "The Lord of the Rings" television show is going to cost all the gold in the Lonely Mountain.

The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Amazon will spend roughly NZ$650 million — $465 million in U.S. dollars — for just the first season of the show.

"What I can tell you is Amazon is going to spend about $650 million in season one alone," Stuart Nash, New Zealand minister for economic development and tourism, told Morning Report. "This is fantastic, it really is … this will be the largest television series ever made."




The figures were released as part of as part of the New Zealand government’s Official Information Act and initially reported by the New Zealand outlet Stuff.

The documents also confirmed the studio's plan to film potentially five seasons in New Zealand — as well as possible, as-yet-unannounced spinoff series.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/li...ion-one-season

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"The Lord of the Rings" TV Series Gets Amazon Premiere Date & First-Look Photo
by Denise Petski
August 2, 2021


Filming wrapped today on Season 1 of Amazon Studios’ highly anticipated Lord of the Rings TV series and we now have a premiere date. The studio has set Friday, September 2, 2022, for the debut of the first season of the yet-to-be-titled series.

New episodes will be released weekly, exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 territories and countries worldwide. Amazon Studios also released the first series image tied to the wrap of filming in New Zealand.

It is a shot from the first episode of the series, but the studio is staying mum for now on the character and actor featured in the photo.

https://deadline.com/2021/08/the-lor...to-1234807566/

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A new age begins September 2, 2022. Journey to Middle-earth with "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power".

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