"Tolkien Didn't Want It," Amazon's 'Lord of the Rings' Plans Scare Fans

The Lord of the Rings, Middle Earth, and the work of J.R.R. Tolkien are beloved by countless fans globally, but the world of the One Ring has been choked out by “toxic Tolkien takes” and more following recent announcements from Amazon’s Rings of Power series and their planned five seasons.

Cate Blanchett as Galadriel — Credit: New Line Cinema

Related: ‘Toxic Tolkien Takes’ Engulf ‘Lord of the Rings’ Due to Amazon’s ‘Rings of Power’

Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power is only three months away, and every Tolkien fan is on edge about how Middle Earth will be portrayed. Though we won’t be seeing Aragon, Frodo Baggins, or Gandalf, Amazon is changing the lore of J.R.R. Tolkien’s work to introduce original characters.

Andy Serkis as Gollum — Credit: New Line Cinema

Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power just blew up the internet with exclusive photos of their brand new cast of Middle Earth characters and settings.

Though the series is set in the Second Age of Middle Earth, author J.R.R. Tolkien and his fantastical world of legendary hobbit Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood), Bilbo Baggins (Sir Ian Holm), Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin), Merry Brandybuck (Dominic Monaghan), Pippen Took (Billy Boyd), elf Legolas (Orlando Bloom), Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellan), Saruman (Sir Christopher Lee), Gollum (Andy Serkis), Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Boromir (Sean Bean), and more won’t appear in Rings of Power.

Nonetheless, dark lord Sauron, Mount Doom, and the One Ring (the Ring of Power) will be at the forefront of Amazon’s reported 500 million dollar series.

Sauron with the One Ring — Credit: New Line Cinema

Rings of Power showrunner JD Payne has announced that The Lord of the Rings series has been planned out as a five-season franchise:

5 seasons are fully planned out for Amazon’s ‘THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER’ series.

“We even know what our final shot of the last episode is going to be,” says JD Payne.

5 seasons are fully planned out for Amazon’s ‘THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER’ series.

“We even know what our final shot of the last episode is going to be,” says JD Payne.

(Source: https://t.co/J9qmeFDIm1) pic.twitter.com/z9VqxzoQDE

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) June 6, 2022

With new stills released from Rings of Power, every Tolkien fan is taking to social media to share their thoughts on Amazon’s recent announcement of planning five seasons for the controversial series:

That’s not a good sign. It never hurts to have a general idea of the direction you wanna go in but planning out the details of multiple future installments never works out because things change and the overall framework is constantly shifting.

That’s not a good sign😕 it never hurts to have a general idea of the direction you wanna go in but planning out the details of multiple future installments never works out because things change and the overall framework is constantly shifting.

— Peter Parker’s Peculiar Pal (@Mr_Red18k) June 6, 2022

Another fan writes:

I have a feeling this will either end up blowing away everyone’s expectations or utterly fail.

I have a feeling this will either end up blowing away everyone’s expectations or utterly fail.
I am extremely hoping for the better outcome.

— Ryan (@ryanfllynnn) June 6, 2022

One fan shares:

It’ll be canceled after one season.

It'll be canceled after one season.

— JangoFett (@JangoFett56) June 6, 2022

Every Tolkien fan is entitled to their own opinion. Still, hatred towards Amazon’s The Rings of Power streaming series has caused a rift amongst the Middle Earth community, similar to the Star Wars fanbase being split over the Sequel Trilogy.

While Peter Jackson’s Rings trilogy still sits in high regard amongst countless viewers, some fans aren’t open to expanding Middle Earth with Amazon at the helm.

More about The Rings of Power

Taking place in the episodic Second Age of Middle Earth, Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power chronicles the construction of the One Ring worn by dark lord Sauron under Mount Doom:

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky, Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone, Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die, One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne in the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn (far left), Sir Ian McKellan as galdalf (middle), orlando bloom as legolas (right), sean astin as samwise gamgee (bottom left), elijah wood as frodo baggins (bottom middle), and dom monaghan as merry brandybuck (bottom right) — Credit: New Line Cinema

The near $1 billion series is set to focus on the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, the historic alliance between Elves and Men (that transcended the entire franchise), the island of Númenor/Westernesse, as well as a look into Khazad‐dûm/Moria before the dwarven kingdom fell to hoards of goblins and the deadly Balrog/Durin’s Bane.

However, unfortunately, you won’t be seeing any of the legendary hobbit Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood), Bilbo Baggins (Sir Ian Holm), Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin), Merry Brandybuck (Dominic Monaghan), Pippen Took (Billy Boyd), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), Gandalf the White (Sir Ian McKellen), Saruman (Sir Christopher Lee), Gollum (Andy Serkis), and more in Rings of Power.

Morfryyd Clark as Galadriel — Credit: Amazon

The series features a relatively unknown cast of lead and supporting actors that are set to play some of the most formative names in Elrond (Robert Aramayo), Lady Galadriel of Lothlórien (Morfydd Clark), and Prince Durin IV (Owain Arthur), replacing Cate Blanchett and Hugo Weaving.

New characters like Dwarven Princess Disa (Sophia Nomvete), silvan elf Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova), and Cole (Maxim Baldry) have been created specifically for the series.

Sophia Nomvete as Dwarven Princess Disa — Credit: Amazon

Showrunner Patrick McKay and writer JD Payne pen the tentative series with directors JA Bayona and Wayne Che Yip leading the Rings show set to debut on September 2, 2022.

Do you want Amazon to reboot The Lord of the Rings? Comment below!