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Amazon to Adapt J.R.R. Tolkien’s Globally Renowned Fantasy Novels, The Lord of the Rings, for Television with a Multi Season Production Commitment 

Amazon to Adapt J.R.R. Tolkien’s Globally Renowned Fantasy Novels, The Lord of the Rings, for Television with a Multi Season Production Commitment 

Television adaptation, exploring new storylines preceding J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, slated to debut exclusively on Prime Video

Seattle, 14 November — Amazon today announced it has acquired the global television rights to The Lord of the Rings, based on the celebrated fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien, with a multi-season commitment. The upcoming Amazon Prime Original will be produced by Amazon Studios in cooperation with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line Cinema, a division of Warner Bros. Entertainment.

“The Lord of the Rings is a cultural phenomenon that has captured the imagination of generations of fans through literature and the big screen,” said Sharon Tal Yguado, Head of Scripted Series, Amazon Studios. “We are honoured to be working with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line on this exciting collaboration for television and are thrilled to be taking The Lord of the Rings fans on a new epic journey in Middle Earth.”

“We are delighted that Amazon, with its longstanding commitment to literature, is the home of the first-ever multi-season television series for The Lord of the Rings,” said Matt Galsor, a representative for the Tolkien Estate and Trust and HarperCollins. “Sharon and the team at Amazon Studios have exceptional ideas to bring to the screen previously unexplored stories based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s original writings.”

Set in Middle Earth, the television adaptation will explore new storylines preceding J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring. The deal includes a potential additional spin-off series.

A world-renowned literary work, and winner of the International Fantasy Award and Prometheus Hall of Fame Award, The Lord of the Rings novels was named Amazon customers’ favourite book of the millennium in 1999 and Britain’s best-loved novel of all time in BBC’s The Big Read in 2003. Its theatrical adaptations, from New Line Cinema and Director Peter Jackson, earned a combined gross of nearly $6 billion worldwide. With an all-star cast that included Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Sean Astin and Orlando Bloom, The Lord of the Rings trilogy garnered a combined 17 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

The upcoming Amazon Prime Original will be available for Prime Video members to stream and enjoy using the Amazon Prime Video app for TVs, connected devices including Amazon Fire TV, and mobile devices, or online with other Amazon Prime Originals online at PrimeVideo.com, at no additional cost to their membership. For a list of all Amazon Prime Video compatible devices, visit www.amazon.com/howtostream. The series will be a global release for members to watch via the Prime Video app or online at PrimeVideo.com in more than 200 countries and territories.

About Amazon Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video is a premium on-demand entertainment service that offers customers the greatest choice in what to watch and how to watch it. Amazon Prime Video is the only service that provides all of the following:

  • Prime Video: Thousands of movies and TV shows, including popular licensed content plus critically-acclaimed and award-winning Amazon Original Series and Movies from Amazon Studios like Transparent, The Man in the High Castle, Love & Friendship, and kids series Tumble Leaf, available for unlimited streaming as part of an Amazon Prime Video membership. Prime Video is also now available to customers in more than 200 countries and territories around the globe at www.primevideo.com.
  • Instant Access: Customers can instantly watch anytime, anywhere through the Amazon Video app on Android and iOS phones and tablets, popular LG and Samsung Smart TVs, Android TV, PlayStation 3 and 4 by Sony, Microsoft’s Xbox and the Xbox One family of devices, or online at PrimeVideo.com. For a list of all compatible devices, visit www.amazon.com/howtostream.
  • Premium Features: Top features like 4K Ultra HD, High Dynamic Range (HDR) and mobile downloads for offline viewing of select content.

About New Line Cinema

Building on five decades of innovation and creativity, New Line Cinema continues its long and successful history of producing critically acclaimed hit films that resonate with both mainstream and niche audiences around the world. New Line became a unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment in March 2008. The company maintains separate development, production, and business affairs operations, but coordinates those functions with Warner Bros. to maximise film performance and operating efficiencies.