I don’t think this has been discussed here - I searched & didn’t find anything.
So what do you guys think? Could TV do it justice? Would you want a prequel including material leading up to FOTR? Could they figure out a way to include Bombadil? Would it have epic scope as the films, or wind up looking like it was copying Game of Thrones?
I would hope if this acutally happens (I’m thinking it won’t) that Frodo would be cast older. Elijah Wood did a marvelous job, but he just comes across as too young too me.
As flawed as the films were, I think it may be too soon for a re-do. The music and the costumes, sets and many performances were so excellent I just can’t picture a new version yet. Than again, we might get the Scouring.
I think it will be split, half will love it, half will hate it. Personally I think it’s a bad idea. I get the feeling the directors of the show are not going to make as much money as they think and the die hard Tolkien fans (even one’s that liked the movies a little bit, they exist) will not like the bastardization of it. Sort of in the same vein as a Star Wars TV show. Think of it that way. Doesn’t seem right… and extra movies (prequels) ruined some of that.
To be a big seller as a TV show you need to have romance, sex, and a healthy dollop of shiftiness and backstabbing.
Tolkein might provide some room for violence, which is also good (but generally too expensive to really do well on TV, when you’re talking war and battles), but he doesn’t give you any of the rest.
Even if they solve the problem of the source material being pretty vague for everything outside of the Trilogy and The Hobbit, it’s still not ideal for TV unless you’re a die hard fan.
The Adventures of Young Strider might have potential. Just have to make sure it’s all set pre-LOTR. That way, you could have him and his ranger posse roaming around Middle Earth fighting orcs, trolls, and other baddies and still have him coming home to Rivendell and Arwen on occasion.
This, plus it gives them the opportunity to explore other areas and peoples of Middle Earth that we haven’t actually seen in the books or movies so far. We can find out why the Haradrim are so willing to serve Sauron (it has to be some other reason than just that they are from further south); the adventures of the two Blue wizards in the East could be covered; perhaps some of the ordinary citizens in Gondor could have interesting stories; or Tales of the Old Forest from before it got to be threatening. There are lots of opportunities for stories within the world of Middle Earth that were never included in a Tolkien book.
Since this series appears to cover the 60 years between The Hobbit and LotR, it doesn’t seem likely that The Silmarillion would enter into it, however.
Read the book a few times and love the movies, which I have seen countless times.
I will watch, but really don’t have high interest in another version.
I still say Dune would be a better TV show than movie and instead of making another Dune movie, they should have focused on creating a Dune-universe TV show.
I’d even watch a brave attempt at filming the Book of the New Sun as a 4-5 season TV show.
Apparently she lived T.A. 2852-2934, and had Bilbo in 2890 when she was 38. So there’s probably a decade or so in the 2875-2885 range when she could have been off somewhere being remarkable.
I am interested in what it’s about, hopefully Silmarillion and not young Aragorn. The Children of Húrin or the sons of Fëanor would be good to earn an R rating.
Mostly I’m curious about how the Tolkien estate gave their go-ahead. Christopher has been historically very protective, is he doing okay?
The Tolkien Estate, judging by the debacle of the Hobbit movies, has decided to turn the works into a cash cow when it comes to TV/Movies. I find the sell-out very disturbing; I feel quite certain the Professor is spinning in the grave.
I don’t think so - J.R.R. said he’d be in favor of a naked cash grab:
They wound up selling the film rights for $100k back in the 60s, I think the $250 million they’re getting for this would fit his “very profitable terms indeed” requirement.
Story of Turin has slavery, betrayal, love, incest, treachery, and a protagonist with poor impulse control. Couple that with the Tuor’s story with shining Gondolin’s fall, a Balrog battle and refugees flight to the mouth of Sirion and you could do ok.
I mean I doubt it would be done well, but the potential is there.