Amazon could be planning to release the upcoming Lord of the Rings series at the perfect time. The streaming service has been lagging behind its competitors in recent years, and those struggles will continue with the next generation of streaming options. Amazon Prime may get back on track with their upcoming prequel series based on the work by J.R.R. Tolkien. Timing can be everything and that might be the case when it comes to Amazon Studios' plan for Lord of the Rings.
Lord of the Rings, Tolkien's epic fantasy tale set in Middle-earth, has been the focus of multiple adaptations. The story was a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit, which also was adapted for the screen. Aside from radio plays and TV projects, Lord of the Rings was adapted for an animated film and TV movie before Peter Jackson developed the big-budget trilogy. Jackson's first LOTR installment was The Fellowship of the Ring in 2001 followed by The Two Towers in 2002 and The Return of the King in 2003. Through Jackson's films, the trilogy following Frodo Baggins and the conflict brought by the One Ring acquired a new generation of fans.
Amazon announced its plans to develop a Lord of the Rings series in late 2017. The show was said to span multiple seasons and tell original stories from the fictional world of Middle-earth prior to the events of The Fellowship of the Ring. The series will reportedly be the most expensive TV show to produce in history. Casting for the series began in the summer of 2019 with filming slated to begin in February of this year. It's been indicated that production will last about two years, which points to a 2021 release date. It would make a lot of sense if Amazon plans for a December 2021 release date for multiple reasons.
The Lord Of The Rings TV Show Could Coincide With A Big Franchise Anniversary
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring made its theatrical release in December 2001. Amazon could celebrate the film's milestone 20th anniversary by releasing its most-anticipated program to date. There's already a lot of hype surrounding the project, but by using the anniversary, the new title could get an extra push. At this point, filming in New Zealand is expected to be a lengthy process as post-production is expected to go well into 2021. However, a December 2021 release date isn't out of the realm of possibility considering the development process is well underway.
Holding the Lord of the Rings TV series for late December 2021 could also be beneficial in that it avoids heavy competition with other fantasy series. The Witcher debuted its first season on Netflix in December 2019 and the follow-up season 2 is already in development. Viewers expect Netflix to drop season 2 sometime later this year, which would be well before Lord of the Rings premieres. Another key competitor will be the Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon. The show, which will air on HBO Max, has been announced to drop in 2022. If Lord of the Rings could avoid overlapping with both series, Amazon could find its way to the top, at least for a short while.