20 new shows that could become the next Game of Thrones

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, Dominic Monaghan, Elijah Wood, Billy Boyd, Sean Astin, 2001

The Lord of the Rings (Amazon)

If you’re looking for sweeping fantasy projects to develop, J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy is about as epic and well-established as you’re ever going to find. The popularity of the books, plus the success of director Peter Jackson’s relatively recent, high-budget film adaptations make this an irresistible (and bloody expensive) project for any producer.

Amazon did just that, charging into a bidding war with Netflix that ended up with Amazon paying $250 million to acquire the TV rights to this world. But that was just the beginning of the money hurricane. Amazon’s Lord of the Rings prequel series will be the most expensive TV show in history, with a minimum $1 billion price tag (and it’s always more than predicted) on a stunning commitment to produce five seasons.

Amazon’s prequel show utilizes the familiar Rings universe but conjures up an entirely new story set long before the events of the first book, The Fellowship of the Ring (sound familiar?). it unfolds during the Age of Númenor, or the Second Age.

It might have been safer to find a way to employ the trilogy’s beloved characters in new adventures, but Amazon appears to be happy to roll the dice with a whole new set of characters. (Plus some of the elves we met in the original trilogy would still be around back then.) This is one to watch, just to see if Amazon throwing around this much moola can generate a winner. The first season of The Lord of the Rings prequel is currently expected to air in early 2021.

Potential: the sky is the limit with this beloved material, and Amazon is more than prepared to throw enough money at it to make it look good. It’s also been reported that they’re “supposed” to be producing 20 episodes for the first season. This show isn’t going to fail for lack of production.