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Amazon may have purchased the television rights for The Lord of the Rings, with the first of five seasons of The Rings of Power having debuted on Prime Video last September. However, Middle-earth Enterprises, which owns a vast IP catalogue and worldwide rights to The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit, has now been acquired by Swedish company Embracer.
Owning Middle-earth Enterprises means that the company are able to create new movies, video games, board games, merchandise, theme park attractions and stage productions based on Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.
In a statement last August the company said: “Opportunities include exploring additional movies based on iconic characters such as Gandalf, Aragorn, Gollum, Galadriel, Eowyn and other characters from the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien, and continue to provide new opportunities for fans to explore this fictive world through merchandising and other experiences.”
And now Freemode, a division of Embracer Group, are teaming up with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros Pictures, who made The Lord of the Rings trilogy, for “multiple” new movies based on Tolkien’s writings.
According to Variety, Freemode CEO Lee Guinchard said: “Following our recent acquisition of Middle-earth Enterprises, we’re thrilled to embark on this new collaborative journey with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, bringing the incomparable world of J.R.R. Tolkien back to the big screen in new and exciting ways.
“We understand how cherished these works are and working together with our partners at New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, we plan to honour the past, look to the future, and adhere to the strongest level of quality and production values.”
No filmmakers are attached to the upcoming movies as of yet, but The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogy director Peter Jackson and his collaborators Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens are clearly involved, having also made a statement.
READ MORE: Lord of the Rings new movie The War of the Rohirrim announced for 2024
Jackson said: “[Warner Bros and Embracer] have kept us in the loop every step of the way. We look forward to speaking with them further to hear their vision for the franchise moving forward.” In the meantime, Warner Bros have an anime movie set for release called The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.
The prequel is set 260 years prior to the events of The Two Towers and stars Brian Cox as Helm Hammerhand, a legendary King of Rohan. He is tasked with defending against an army of Dunlendings, before he became the namesake for the stronghold known as Helm’s Deep. Additionally, Miranda Otto is reprising her role as Éowyn from the live-action original trilogy, as the narrator of the movie.
