Lord of the Rings: Amazon’s most expensive series to date

Six years have passed since Peter Jackson’s last foray into Middle Earth. But soon we’ll have the opportunity again to travel to the world of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and the three “Hobbit” movies – after all, the “Lord of the Rings” adventure on Amazon is set to begin at the end of 2021. Now, Friday. April 16, 2021, the production cost is announced and the number makes the bargain hunters shiver: Amazon plans to spend a whopping $ 465 million (roughly € 385 million) for the first season of the series, according to the English language site. rnz.co.nz.

However, Amazon doesn’t have to bear the full cost of the fantasy scene. This wasn’t a problem for the multi-billion dollar company. The New Zealand government supports Amazon financially. Stuart Nash, New Zealand’s Minister of Economy and Tourism, announced that New Zealand plans to invest more than US $ 72 million (about € 60 million) in the realization of the chain. It is not yet known how far the total will be in the end, according to a report from nrz.co.nz. But it plans to cover 25 percent of the cost of the first season. According to Nash, this deal should bring multi-year benefits to the island nation: The chain gives New Zealand the opportunity to strengthen its international brand through a campaign promoting New Zealand as the ‘Home of the Lord of the Rings’ series. According to nrz.co.nz, this stems from the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which was signed in December 2020 following negotiations between Amazon and the New Zealand Film Commission, Tourism New Zealand, and the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Employment.

Thus, the first season of “Lord of the Rings” alone is the most expensive series ever produced. For comparison: HBO’s hit fictional “Game of Thrones” cost around US $ 100 million (around € 82 million) per season. The Hollywood Reporter. It was also said that the first season of the Star Wars series “The Mandalorian” cost around US $ 100 million to produce. So future Middle-Earth adventures are record-breaking.