Written by Nadia Dardon
Since November of last year, Amazon announced a new TV series about Middle Earth and the characters J.R.R. Tolkien created. It was also announced a biographical film about the author. The fans had been waiting for more news regarding the project and this SDCC Panel brought just what we needed. The panel was formed by the owners of the web page TheOneRing.net (TORn), and they commented on all the upcoming projects.
In order to talk about everything, the panel consisted of Clifford Broadway (host of TORn), Justin Sewell (producer of TORn), Josh Long (host of Collecting the Precious), Abie Ekenezar (host of Black and Blue: The Series), and it was moderated by Cathy Udovch (special event coordinator of TORn), plus everyone was surprised when they were joined by Sala Baker. All of them talked about Tolkien, but unfortunately, many fans were not allowed to enter the panel for as it was full to capacity.
They talked about the biographical film, in which Colm Meany, Lily Collins, and Nicholas Hoult will take part under the direction of James Strong. The administrators of TORn have already seen a trailer for the film, but were unable to provide much information of it. However , we still don’t have a release date for the film, so we’ll have to wait some more until we’re able to watch it.
The movie about Tolkien’s early years began shooting in October (@NicholasHoult as Tolkien and @lilycollins as Edith). Storyline: Tolkien draws from an epic life on his return from the Great War to create one of the greatest works of literature in ‘LotR’. https://t.co/M8Tmvtf2C8 pic.twitter.com/Xk7eXz1Y7z
— J.R.R. Tolkien (@JRRTolkien) December 11, 2017
They also talked about the Amazon TV series, which it seems will be focused in Aragorn. When they confirmed the series, Sharon Tal Yguado (the chief of all of Amazon’s scripted programming) said, “Lord of the Rings is a cultural phenomenon that has captured the imagination of generations of fans through literature and the big screen. We are honoured to work with Tolkien Estate and Trust, Harper Collins, and New Line in this exciting collaboration for television and we are excited to give the fans of Lord of the Rings a new epic ride through Middle Earth.” However, the TV series does not have a showrunner as of yet.
During the panel, they talked about multiple other projects outside of the film and the TV series. Among them, they announced a new book coming out in the summer. They also mentioned the rumours about a whole new area about the series in Universal Studios in Orlando. There will also be a display on J.R.R. Tolkien in the Bodleian Library in Oxford and the Morgan Library in New York starting in January.
It seems we have plenty more of Tolkien to enjoy in the upcoming years and we await more news on these projects in the months to come!
I saw an early screening of the film last night and I thought it was really good. It seems they really did their research and got many historical facts and details correct, as well as telling a compelling story that shows some of the inspirations of events, stories and characters in LOTR and The Hobbit.
The “display on J.R.R. Tolkien” is titled “Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth,” and is the largest exhibition on Tolkien that has ever been presented. It opened at the Bodleian Libraries in Oxford on June 1st, and will run through October 28th of this year. About two-thirds of the items will also be on display at the Morgan Library in New York City, January 25th through May 12, 2019.