The streaming service has acquired the rights to JRR Tolkien’s fantasy epic and has committed to a multi-season series with potential spin-offsBilbo Baggins, Gandalf and the rest of Middle Earth are making the switch to the small screen after Amazon announced it has committed to a multi-series adaptation inspired by JRR Tolkien’s classic fantasy novels. The television adaptation will tell new stories based in the period preceding The Fellowship of the Ring, the novel that provided the basis for the first part of Peter Jackson’s film trilogy. A Lord of the Rings series had been rumoured, but on Monday the streaming service confirmed it had acquired rights to Tolkien’s work and would be pursuing the project with a potential spin-off. The news comes after Disney announced it was working on a live-action Star Wars TV project led by The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson, which will feature completely new characters in “a corner of the galaxy that Star Wars lore has never before explored”. Jackson’s cinematic adaptations of The Lord of the Rings grossed nearly $6bn worldwide, winning 17 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Source: The Guardian November 13, 2017 19:39 UTC