The highly anticipated Lord of the Rings series at Amazon Prime has begun to shed the clouds of mystery surrounding it. On Tuesday, Amazon Studios released an official synopsis for the upcoming series, including descriptions of its characters and major plot points, via Entertainment Weekly.
The Amazon Prime Original series is based on The Lord of the Rings trilogy written by British author J.R.R. Tolkien. The original series which entails The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King was published from 1954 to 1955. He also wrote several accompanying novels taking place within the Middle Earth universe, including The Hobbit and the posthumously released The Silmarillion.
Originally reported by TheOneRing.net, Entertainment Weekly picked up the sprawling summary: “Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness. Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.”
There are several easter eggs planted throughout the summary, including acknowledgements to the original film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson (The Beatles: Get Back). The official description references The Dark Lord Sauron as Tolkien’s “greatest villain,” and fans will remember him in a flashback from the beginning of the first film released in 2001, The Fellowship of the Ring. The summary also acknowledges iconic geography from the Tolkien universe, including the Misty Mountains. The Lord of the Rings film series was a critical and commercial success, with its final film, Return of the King, winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards in 2004.
Watch the clip from the opening scene of The Fellowship of the Ring below, depicting the rise and fall of Sauron:
The official summary for the Amazon Prime series comes after the announcement of twenty additional cast members joining the show in December. Some of the actors cast include Cynthia Addai-Robinson (Arrow), Robert Aramayo (Game of Thrones), Will Pouter (We’re the Millers) and Joseph Mawle (Game of Thrones).
Expected to premiere its first season sometime in 2021 or 2022, the massive series is currently shooting in New Zealand.