New ‘The Lord of the Rings’ TV Show Gives Details on Release Date and What the Series Is Bringing to the Table
The Lord of the Rings trilogy from the early 2000s is hailed as an amazing adaptation of the original books, and Amazon Prime Video is soon to release its attempt at exploring the world of Tolkien. While many fans of Lord of the Rings are skeptical, others are excited to see how the story could be interpreted in the form of a TV series. Though the details of what Amazon plans for the series and how it will be different from previous adaptations are still uncertain, we’re slowly learning more about what to expect. What should Lord of the Rings fans look forward to?
‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy of the 2000s was a critical success
Lord of the Rings was somewhat of a cult phenomenon throughout the twentieth century. Though anyone who was into fantasy knew Lord of the Rings, and it even received a 1970s animated adaptation from Ralph Bakshi, it really exploded in 2001, when the film adaptation of The Fellowship of the Ring was released. This film was both nominated for and the winner of several Academy Awards, and the rest of the series would continue to follow the immense success of the first film.
The producers approached the film with the perspective of making a historical drama, similar to how Tolkien himself framed the novels as a history series rather than fiction, leading to a feeling of scope (that was arguably lost with the later Hobbit trilogy.) Additionally, the series used innovative and creative practical effects to create the world, and got composer Howard Shore to make a soundtrack that earned just as much praise as the films themselves. It’s clear that these films were an incredible work of art.
‘The Lord of the Rings’ the series will release in 2022
Amazon’s Lord of the Rings series is not an adaptation, but rather, an expansion. Though many fans feel quite protective over the world that Tolkien imagine and doubt that a massive corporation motivated by profits could even approach the way the Professor wrote Middle Earth, it is interesting to see that the series will explore the Second Age, after the early wars of the Rings but before the death of Isildur, and millennia before the events of The Hobbit.
The series was in production in the beginning of 2020, though its production was thrown off-course by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, after several years, we have an official release date for the first season: September 2, 2022. Hopefully, it can live up just a little bit to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien!
The ‘Lord of the Rings’ cast has also been announced
The cast list for the show has also been announced, and due to the fact that this will be an ensemble show, it’s quite long. The list includes big names and new faces in the industry. Among those who will have major roles are Cynthia Addai-Robinson, who has appeared on Arrow and Shooter, Robert Aramayo, who appeared on another high-fantasy series, Game of Thrones, Owain Arthur, an actor known for theater work, and many, many more. These actors all have serious chops, and even those who are critical with a Lord of the Rings story from a company like Amazon do have to appreciate the skills, effort, and hard work these people will bring to the table. On top of this, following the shooting locations for the original trilogy and for The Hobbit, this series was filmed in New Zealand, so it’ll have visual continuity.
