'Lord of the Rings' TV series adaptation eyed, with Amazon a potential home
Has Amazon found the Game of Thrones it’s been seeking?
A Lord of the Rings TV series is in the very early development stages, according to The Hollywood Reporter, from Warner Bros. Television, whose feature-film division produced the LOTR movies. There’s no writer attached to the project yet — Warner Bros. is still looking to nail down the rights from the estate of book author J.R.R. Tolkien — but Amazon Studios has already emerged as an potential home.
Rings, of course, has already been adapted into a trilogy of films directed by Peter Jackson, which grossed nearly $3 billion at the worldwide box office and won a total of 17 Oscars. The fantasy epic is set in the fictional Middle-earth, where hobbit Frodo Baggins leads a fellowship of do-gooders on a quest to destroy an all-powerful ring. (But is it possible to stretch Frodo’s story far enough to accommodate an ongoing TV series?)
In any case, a LOTR TV series sounds like just the kind of thing Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was looking for when he directed his TV division to find the next Game of Thrones — i.e., a high-end drama with global appeal. That directive led to Amazon scrapping plans for a second season of the Christina Ricci period drama Z: The Beginning of Everything.
Launch Gallery: TV Adaptations of Movies: A Complete Guide
Related stories
Good Girls Revolt EP: Ousted Amazon Boss Never Watched Our Show
Amazon, in Wake of Harvey Weinstein Scandal, Drops Robert De Niro Drama
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Sets Amazon Premiere Date -- Watch Trailer
Get more from TVLine: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
