Lord of the Rings: New Amazon series to feature ‘familiar’ characters

New synopsis also reveals show’s locations

Lord of the Rings fans finally have some idea what the new TV series will be about.

Production on Amazon Studios’ high-budget series began in New Zealand last year, but is said to have wrapped filming in December.

Now, Amazon has released a new synopsis for the forthcoming series, which has teased some details regarding what to expect.

Firstly, the series will be a prequel set “thousands of years before” Peter Jackson’s trilogy. 

The show will depict “the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history” and will include new characters as well as “familiar” ones.

It has also revealed which of JRR Tolkien’s locations will be featured in the series.

The synopsis reads: “This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of JRR 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.”

Amazon bought the television rights for The Lord of the Rings for $250m (£183m) in November 2017. The series, which is expected to last for five seasons, stars Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Joseph Mawle, Lenny Henry, Peter Mullan and Saint Maud star Morfydd Clark.

It is expected to arrive on Amazon Prime video later this year.