The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power showrunner Patrick McKay talks about the pressures of following The Lord of the Rings film trilogy with his new series. The show will premiere on September 2, 2022, with a five-season deal with a commitment of at least one billion dollars, the most expensive television production ever undertaken. McKay is set to run the series along with J.D. Payne, with Jurassic World: Lost Kingdom director J.A. Bayona set to helm the first two episodes.
Set thousands of years before the events of LOTR, The Rings of Power will depict events through Middle Earth's Second Age, including the forging of the titular Rings of Power, and the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron. Characters from LOTR including Galadriel and Elrond will appear in the new series. Filming of the second season is expected to commence before the premiere in mid-2022.
In a discussion with Vanity Fair, McKay talks about the immense pressure of following Peter Jackson's trilogy, some of the most highly regarded fantasy films of all time. He also talks about the dangers of amending the canon of author J.R.R. Tolkien, one of the most beloved storytellers in history. He goes on to talk about returning to the series after beginning filming before the COVID-19 pandemic and the additional difficulties of filming a project of this scope. Read his quote below:
“I knew what they were going through and they knew what I was going through also, because can you imagine going back to such a beloved world and [facing] the high bar of the Peter Jackson movies? We were, all the time, very aware of the massive expectations.”
The Rings of Power has a large ensemble of actors, many of whom are unknowns to give the world a more immersive feeling away from big-name performers. The ensemble will feature Game of Thrones actor Robert Aramayo as Elrond, with The Crown actor Charles Edwards as Celebrimbor, the Elven smith who forges the Rings of Power. The series will stream one new episode weekly, with a season of at least eight episodes.
The Rings of Power will serve as a sort of test for Amazon, proving whether or not they're capable of producing a series of a scope that can be both epic and approachable for newcomers. The series is also shooting to be the successor of Game of Thrones, sharing similarities such as the high fantasy setting, a large cast of characters, and multiple branching storylines. Whether or not the series can fulfill such lofty goals will have to wait, but in the meantime, The Rings of Power is an intriguing and exciting idea, one that can hopefully have the same passion and thrills as its big-screen predecessors.
Source: Vanity Fair