The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power showrunner JD Payne has revealed that season 1 sets up events in season 5. Based on the world-renowned high fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, the upcoming The Lord of the Rings prequel spin-off series will be set in the Second Age, a time before the wars that decimated Middle-Earth, in which the aftermath can be seen in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings films. The upcoming show will depict the rise of the evil Dark Lord Sauron and the events following the forging of the Rings of Power.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has cultivated an expansive cast of diverse characters that feature in a story developed since 2018. However, the series will not tie directly with Jackson's popular The Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit films due to legal rights issues. Familiar characters will return, such as Elrond, this time portrayed by Robert Aramayo of Game of Thrones fame, Isildur played by Maxim Baldry, and Galadriel with Morfydd Clark taking over the role made famous by Cate Blanchett.
The showrunners for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power recently sat down with Empire and explained that season 1 would directly set up season 5. Payne detailed that they had mapped out the entirety of the story and know every major plot point throughout the series. Read what the showrunner said below.
"We even know what our final shot of the last episode is going to be. The rights that Amazon bought were for a 50-hour show. They knew from the beginning that was the size of the canvas – this was a big story with a clear beginning, middle and end. There are things in the first season that don’t pay off until Season 5."
Payne and co-showrunner Patrick McKay were brought in to create the new series despite having experience with only uncredited and unproduced work. J.J. Abrams reportedly vouched for the two based on their work on a Star Trek film. However, the two's vision for the show impressed Amazon enough to be hired, and the duo has mapped out the entire series in detail.
Although season 1 setting up events in season 5 seems like something that should happen in every television show that survives for that long, many series are greenlit without a multi-season plan. Instead, a single season is written at a time with only a general idea of where the story will go the following year or no idea at all. Planning and mapping out the details for an entire five-season series is impressive. The commitment to the story should allow for a singular vision that helps maintain a strong narrative core throughout its series' run. Only time will tell if their hard work has paid off when The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power debuts on Amazon on September 2.
Source: Empire