The Lord of the Rings The franchise has a new owner and it looks like a number of spinoff films are a priority, likely revolving around characters like Gandalf, Aragorn and Gollum. Read on for details…
Just weeks ago The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power comes to Prime Video, Embracer Group has announced that it has acquired Middle-earth Enterprises.
The company now owns the worldwide rights to motion pictures, video games, board games, merchandising, theme parks and stage productions related to the iconic literary works of fantasy The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien.
What does this mean?
Right now, it’s hard to say, but a press release may shed some light on the company’s future plans. In addition to having a financial interest in this TV series, it is said “Other opportunities include exploring additional films based on iconic characters such as Gandalf, Aragorn, Gollum, Galadriel, Eowyn and other characters from JRR Tolkien’s literary works.”
It’s been a long time since then The Lord of the Rings graced theaters, but when they did, the trilogy earned widespread critical acclaim, Academy Awards, and big bucks at the box office. Spinoff movies revolving around these characters could be very good or very badbut there will certainly be interest from fans in the possibility of spending more time with them.
The Embracer Group has also acquired the rights to other literary works related to Middle-earth that have been approved by the Tolkien Estate and HarperCollins, which have yet to be explored.
“I’m really excited to have The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, one of the world’s most epic fantasy franchises, join the Embracer family, opening up more media opportunities, including synergies across our global group.” says Lars Wingefors, Founder and CEO of Embracer Group.
“I’m excited to see what the future holds for this IP with Freemode and Asmodee as an authority within the group. Going forward, we also look forward to working with both existing and new external licensees of our increasingly strong IP portfolio.”
It could be an exciting few years for The Lord of the Rings franchise, and it’s clear that the plan is to expand the series to the big screen. Which characters will be featured remains to be seen, but we’re sure the above names weren’t accidentally mentioned…
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