It's only been a few days since Warner and Amazon announced they were developing a series within the same universe as 'The Lord of the Rings', but it would appear as though the two companies have already come to an agreement. The streaming platform now holds the rights to J.R.R. Tolkien's work, meaning that it's only a matter of time before we'll be able to catch a glimpse of Middle-Earth once more. Amazon will be working alongside New Line Cinema, publishing house HarperCollins and Tolkien Estate and Trust.
As of yet, there's no screenwriter or cast tied to the project, but Amazon plans to expand the Tolkien universe with prequel stories, which will take place before the events of 'The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring'. There are also plans for future spin-offs in the pipeline. "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 the new head of series at Amazon, Sharon Tal Yguado in a statement.
A representative for the Tolkien Estate and Trust and for HarperCollins said, "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". "Sharon and the team at Amazon Studios have exceptional ideas to bring to the screen previously unexplored stories based on JRR Tolkien's original writings", they continued.
Millions
This agreement has only been made possible since Warner Bros resolved it's dispute with the Tolkien company for a settlement of 80 million dollars. The two parties were involved in a five year legal battle over the profits from 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Hobbit' sagas.
Amazon won the rights to the spin-off series ahead of competitors, Netflix and HBO. The streaming platform has expressed for some time, how it would like to create a series to rival that of 'Game of Thrones', perhaps now they'll finally be able to achieve that. We'll have to wait until 2020, when the series is set to air, to find out.
