We recently learned of all the “Game of Thrones” prequels that HBO ruled out before deciding on “House of the Dragon”. Now, and in view of the fact that a huge televised battle will take place at the end of the summer between the two medieval fantasy series, The series based on “The Lord of the Rings” have come to light that Amazon has discarded to opt for “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”. After a first trilogy that established a chair, and a second centered around ‘The Hobbit’, the cinematic universe created by Peter Jackson has a legion of fans who wouldn’t want an adaptation that detracts from the New Zealand director’s legacy.
Prime Video’s decision to shoot “The Silmarilion” and adapt Second Age was due to an intention to dissociate itself from Jackson’s work on an aesthetic and emotional level. This does not mean that there are no links, because we will see characters like Galadriel, Elrond or Gil-Galad already appeared, with greater or lesser weight, in the first trilogy. However, this new platform commitment to take control of television fantasy could have gone in other directions much closer to the public.
In an interview with Total Film, showrunners of the series, JD Payne and Patrick McKay, unveiled the projects that had been put on the table but, in the end, had to discard. “When we first met to talk about the series, we were told there were literally dozens of people who were also approaching us with proposals. Amazon bought the rights to the trilogy, the appendices and to ‘Lo Hobbit ‘. They said the door was wide open – any story within that material could be made. So there were people presenting a series based on the young Aragorn or a spin-off of Gimli”.
A thoughtful decision
Finally, “The Rings of Power” was the series of choice. And, apparently, they’ve figured it all out, right down to the last take of a five-season streak. “They wanted to do something that was worthy of Tolkien”Payne added. “We thought about it a lot and proceeded to select the material. We went through all kinds of stories: that story of the Second Age, the Dark Lord Sauron, the fall of Numeror and the fight against Sauron on Mount Doom. We thought the arc of the main events of the Second Age was an incredible, untold story”.
“The Rings of Power” will arrive on Amazon Prime Video 2 September.
Source: E Cartelera
