UPDATE 3rd August 2021, as you’ll see from all the information below, we’ve got a new update!
The highly anticipated, yet-to-be titled Amazon Original The Lord of the Rings television series will launch on Friday, 2nd September, 2022 on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide, with new episodes available weekly, which might be over a year away but I’d rather they took their time on this one, it’s been thousands of years, after all…
December 2020: After our previous announcement, which was back in January 2020, a whole new host of cast members has been shared for this all-new Lord of the Rings series, that’s coming to Prime Video, and will be joining the rest who have been filming in New Zealand!
They are: Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Maxim Baldry, Ian Blackburn, Kip Chapman, Anthony Crum, Maxine Cunliffe, Trystan Gravelle, Sir Lenny Henry, Thusitha Jayasundera, Fabian McCallum, Simon Merrells, Geoff Morrell, Peter Mullan, Lloyd Owen, Augustus Prew, Peter Tait, Alex Tarrant, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker and Sara Zwangobani.
Blackburn, Chapman, Crum, Cunliffe, Tait, Tarrant and Wadham all hail from New Zealand, with the remaining international ensemble cast originating from Australia, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Showrunners and executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay said:
“The world that J.R.R. Tolkien created is epic, diverse, and filled with heart. These extraordinarily talented performers, hailing from across the globe, represent the culmination of a multi-year search to find brilliant and unique artists to bring that world to life anew. The international cast of Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings series is more than just an ensemble. It is a family. We are thrilled to welcome each of them to Middle-earth.”
January 2020: As you may have heard, Amazon Studios have been working on an all-new Lord of The Rings-based series now for a while and today we get a better understanding of the cast involved but, as of yet, we don’t know who (or what?) they’ll be playing in a whole-new-Middle Earth-world, inspired by the works of Tolkien.
What’s important to note is the fact these folks will regulars, seemingly covering a multi-generational faction – and I definitely don’t know all of these names – I like the fact that there’s a lot of great up and coming talent here. Whilst it’s good to recognise big names, I find they’re a distraction when creating something new, not to say they won’t turn up in future announcements!
Enough of the waffle, get ready to expect: Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Nazanin Boniadi, Tom Budge, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, and Daniel Weyman.
What we do know is that Season One will be 8-episodes, that it’s led by showrunners and executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay; alongside J.A. Bayona, who is directing the first two episodes and serving as executive producer, alongside his partner Belén Atien.
critical popcorn 
It was probably easier to do than starting from scratch with the buildings, etc? Will Peter Jackson let them use his stuff? I don’t see his name mentioned anywhere connected with it.
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As far as I’m aware, it’s more about the Tolkien estate, and how they’ve let the new creators freedom to develop the stories really, in whatever came before, or probably things mentioned in the books but never beyond their – plus that map of Middle Earth, and all its possibilities!
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Yet why NZ? Tolkien wasn’t from there was he?
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It’s where they filmed everything so far, films, etc…! Tolkien has quite the history though: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._R._R._Tolkien#Biography
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Yes, and iirc, Jackson bought up large swaths of NZ to make his movies on. That’s why I’m wondering why his name isn’t being connected with the project. Thanks for the JRRT link.
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I think, simply, it’s just nothing to do with him anymore as it’s all-new stories. I’m sure they’ll use WETA Workshops though, hopefully anyway, and won’t be too over CGI’d. Practical effects always look so much better.
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