So, if you have 250 mill, you can buy the TV rights to Lord of the Rings...[SOLD

[JasonPratt]

Seriously. LOTR movies are up there with Star Wars for me. Why remake it as a TV series.

Because then we might get an accurate depiction of what was written rather than Hollywood invention to make the films "better."

I find your naive optimism disturbing. 

I mean, yeah, we theoretically might get a more accurate depiction of what was written. But we might have gotten that with the earlier auteurs, too. What do you think the odds are, not only that the creators will resist the temptation to alter the deal (perhaps even further), but also that they will be able to competently translate the text more accurately to film? and in a way that won't be boring as hell?

I mean, if you're going to make jokes about sniffing and clothes for a television adaptation of the Wheel of Time, by the same token (and by quite the same Tolkien!) the same jokes will apply in both works to ludicrous levels of descriptive environmental prose.

And that doesn't even account for some of the film changes being (at least arguably) proper and necessary for condensing a long work to a visual entertainment medium -- changes which will make much the same sense when adapting for television. No one will want to watch a forty-five minute episode about the midge marsh chapter. Or about the hobbits hanging out in the farmhouse near the river before making their way to the ferry and thence, once across, to Bree.

[Sir Slash]

There may come a day when we have a decent Lord of the Rings TV show.
But it is not this day!
Because this day, we have Bachelor in Paradise!

[MetalDog]

Seriously. LOTR movies are up there with Star Wars for me. Why remake it as a TV series.

Because then we might get an accurate depiction of what was written rather than Hollywood invention to make the films "better."

I find your naive optimism disturbing. 

I mean, yeah, we theoretically might get a more accurate depiction of what was written. But we might have gotten that with the earlier auteurs, too. What do you think the odds are, not only that the creators will resist the temptation to alter the deal (perhaps even further), but also that they will be able to competently translate the text more accurately to film? and in a way that won't be boring as hell?

I mean, if you're going to make jokes about sniffing and clothes for a television adaptation of the Wheel of Time, by the same token (and by quite the same Tolkien!) the same jokes will apply in both works to ludicrous levels of descriptive environmental prose.

And that doesn't even account for some of the film changes being (at least arguably) proper and necessary for condensing a long work to a visual entertainment medium -- changes which will make much the same sense when adapting for television. No one will want to watch a forty-five minute episode about the midge marsh chapter. Or about the hobbits hanging out in the farmhouse near the river before making their way to the ferry and thence, once across, to Bree.

I'm not asking for a word for word, scene for scene adaptation.  I agree that there are things better read than filmed.  Traversing the country between Rivendell and Moria.  Or pretty much the whole journey across the Dead Marshes.  What I will never condone is Peter Jackson making Sam leave Frodo at the stairs to Cirith Ungol.  Totally against every grain and fiber of Sam Gamgee's very being.  And yet, Hollywood said it must be so.  And ruined it in the process.  There are other examples I could give, but I've beaten that horse to death many times here.  And I will end by saying what I always say during these discussions, I will always be grateful Hollywood attempted these and got them, mostly, right.

[JasonPratt]

Granted, the forced Peej conflict was indeed stupid sometimes. As Lindsay Ellis (the Nostalgia Chick) put it in one of her retrospectives on the LotR films, "Are you ready for some bulllllllshit!?  :D "

Rebooting the thing to fix those several problems however seems like a losing gamble. The new auteurs will be looking to dramatically fix and improve Tolkien's work, too, in various ways. I fully, fully expect a reboot to gay up the Frodo/Sam relationship, for example, in total disregard for Tolkien's intentions. And maybe Merry/Pippin. And maybe Gimli/Legolas. Why? Because that's the time we live in now, not Tolkien's time. And because that would be a selling point for some fans, and would create selling controversy, and whoever fronts the bill for this series would be desperately looking to guarantee their money back at least plus as much profit as possible.

I think the pressure to recoup and profit on their massive expense, won't be focused on repairing a few story tweaks in the films which were added for extra dramatic oomph in the first place.

[Nefaro]

Imagine what a cable conglomerate might do to it.  I can see it now..

"LotR:  The Reality Survival Series"

Can four contestants survive.. the island of Mordor!?  Watch Thursday night to see if Becky will be voted off!

[Labbug]

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/13/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-tv-series-coming.html

[Gusington]

[Sir Slash]

I didn't say anything. That was the burritos. Burritoeses precious.

[bayonetbrant]

Amazon is taking the plunge

https://www.theringer.com/tv/2017/11/13/16645288/lord-of-the-rings-tv-series-amazon

[Sir Slash]

"A Game of Rings". I hear Rosie O'Donnell will play the Balrog--- without make-up!  :o

[JasonPratt]

* Multi-season rights acquired.

* Original stories preceding the Lotr films.

* Spinoff series of this series of prequel spinoff stories are possible.

* I did not make up that previous item.

* No, really.

* Really.

My brain cannot understand this.  #:-)

[Nefaro]

Amazon is taking the plunge

https://www.theringer.com/tv/2017/11/13/16645288/lord-of-the-rings-tv-series-amazon

I'm happy about two things, in this case:

1)  It's a streaming service doing this.

2)  Amazon has been expanding their thematic repertoire.  Most of their prior in-house productions were mom-dramas of the political or police/murder variety.

After seeing them follow through with producing a new The Tick series, I hoped they would continue to expand away from the same 'ole nighttime soap derivative rut.  I've never enjoyed much of their A-Prime Video offerings.  Maybe that's getting addressed.

[bayonetbrant]

Most of their prior in-house productions were mom-dramas of the political or police/murder variety.

Man in the High Castle is a mom-drama?

[bbmike]

^Yeah, didn't you read the book? They find the dude's dead, mummified mother in the basement of the castle at the end.

[Nefaro]

Most of their prior in-house productions were mom-dramas of the political or police/murder variety.

Man in the High Castle is a mom-drama?

Not as much as the others, but I still see it as largely in the Drama genre despite the alterna-history theme.

It didn't draw me in, despite repeatedly coming back to watch another episode to see if it finally hooked me.  Never did, unfortunately, even after getting into the 2nd season a bit.  :-\