Peter Jackson Says Amazon's LORD OF THE RINGS Series Asked Him to Consult on the Show, Then Ghosted Him
Peter Jackson is the director responsible for the beautiful Lord of the Rings film trilogy, so some fans wondered if he would have a part in bringing the new series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power to Amazon. The director didn’t believe so until he received a call from the studio asking for him to consult on the show that is diving into the lore of the second age. He said he wouldn’t be able to give any feedback until he read the show’s script, and after scripts were promised to him, he never heard from the studio again.
In a recent interview with Scott Feinberg on The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, Jackson explained:
“They asked me if I wanted to be involved — [writer-producer Fran Walsh] and I — and I said, ‘That’s an impossible question to answer without seeing a script.’ So they said, ‘As soon as we get the first couple scripts, we’ll send them to you.’ And the scripts never showed up. That’s the last thing I heard, which is fine. No complaints at all.”
In an upcoming The Business podcast, talking to The Hollywood Reporter’s Kim Masters, the filmmaker told the same story with a few more details, saying:
“About four, five years ago, they asked if I would be interested in it. So I said, ‘Have you got the scripts yet?’ Because I know how hard the scripts were to write for the films, and I didn’t know the people writing their scripts. They said, ‘Oh no, we haven’t got the scripts yet, but as soon as we do, we’ll send you the scripts.’ So I was waiting for the scripts to arrive, and they never did.”
But as frankly as Jackson tells the story, he doesn’t hold a grudge. He’s still a fan, and is excited to watch the series. He said in a statement:
“I’ll be watching it. I’m not the sort of guy who wishes ill will. Filmmaking is hard enough. If somebody makes a good film or TV show, it’s something to celebrate. The one thing I am looking forward to is actually seeing it as a perfectly neutral viewer.”
Jackson adds that Amazon is “betting the farm on Tolkien,” given its massive half-billion-dollar budget for the show’s debut season. Amazon Studios responded to Jackson’s comments with the following statement:
“In pursuing the rights for our show, we were obligated to keep the series distinct and separate from the films. We have the utmost respect for Peter Jackson and The Lord of The Rings films and are thrilled that he is looking forward to watching The Rings of Power.”
THR reports that the Rings of Power showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay are huge fans of Jackson’s work, and as such, have “privately attempted to make overtures to the filmmaker.” But they’ve had to toe the line, keeping the films (which are owned by Warner Bros.) and TV show separate. So maybe that’s why Jackson was ultimately kept at arm’s length from the project.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is set to premiere on Amazon on September 2nd.