Courtesy of Amazon Studios
- Amazon Studios is moving filming for its second season of its "Lord of the Rings" series to the UK.
- The decision marks a new shift for the franchise, which was previously shot in New Zealand.
- The New Zealand government said it was disappointed with the move, per Reuters.
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Amazon's unnamed "Lord of the Rings" original series will film its second season in the UK, announced Amazon Studios on Thursday. The announcement is a major shift for the franchise, taking filming for Tolkien's epic fantasy world away from New Zealand for the first time.
It said the shift from New Zealand would "align with the studio's strategy of expanding its production footprint and investing in studio space across the UK."
"We want to thank the people and the government of New Zealand for their hospitality and dedication and for providing 'The Lord of the Rings' series with an incredible place to begin this epic journey," said Vernon Sanders, VP and Co-Head of TV for Amazon Studios, in the announcement.
The New Zealand government told Reuters that it was informed of Amazon Studios' move on Thursday and that it was disappointed with the decision.
Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings"and "The Hobbit" trilogies were both shot entirely in New Zealand, according to the country's official website. Together, the six movies grossed a total $5.88 billion in the box office.
Amazon Studios has leaned into its spending for its LOTR series, which is set to cost the studio around $1 billion and is said to be the "largest television series ever made." Production for the first season alone, most of which was already shot in New Zealand, reportedly came in at a price tag of $465 million. For comparison, each season of HBO's hit show "Game of Thrones" cost around $100 million to produce.
The new series will be set thousands of years before the events of the original films and will feature a cast of characters "both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth," according to Amazon Studios. It is scheduled for release on September 2, 2022 on Amazon Prime.