In recent details highlighted by The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix and HBO were initially in the running for producing a Lord of the Rings TV series. Both streamers were pitching the Tolkein estate before Amazon landed the rights to develop the series which is now titled, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
According to the report, HBO’s pitched was “essentially remaking” Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy but as a series. The estate, however, was not interested in retreading Middle-Earth in the Third Age. Netflix, on the other hand, wanted to take a different approach, apparently pitching a Ganalf series and an Aragorn drama. An insider equated their pitch to the “Marvel approach [which]…completely freaked out the estate.”
Before settling on Second Age of Middle-Earth for The Rings of Power, Amazon was meticulous with their vision and interviewed “dozens of writers, producers and directors” for the project. The first two episodes aired back in September and quickly became Amazon’s most-watched premiere, amassing over 25 million viewers worldwide in 24 hours.
In other entertainment news, watch the new trailer for Netflix’s Money Heist Berlin spin-off.
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