Howard Shore, who won three Oscars for The Lord Of The Rings trilogy, is in talks to compose the music for the TV series.

It is exciting progress for a series reported to cost $465 million for its first season alone, making it the most expensive TV series of all time. The currently untitled show is based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic novels, and recently wrapped principal photography on Season 1. The show is scheduled to premiere in about a year on Prime Video Sept. 2, 2022. After that, post production Season 1 continues in New Zealand through June 2022, and pre-production on Season Two will begin concurrently in the UK right after, starting Jan. 1, 2022.

Amazon had already announced this year they were moving from New Zealand, where all three LOTR and three The Hobbit films were shot — to the UK. The elaborate sets built for the show will be dismantled and shipped there, and Prime is building a large production center in Scotland.

Developed by J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, The Lord of the Rings series is described as an “epic drama” set in the Second Age of Middle-earth — thousands of years before the events of LOTR and the novels by Tolkien. A condition of the deal cut with the Tolkein estate is that the series must stay true to the original books.

The Lord of the Rings books have been translated into some 40 languages and have sold more than 150 million copies. The LOTR trilogy grossed nearly $3 billion globally, and won 17 Oscars.

“Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth.”

IGN has a gallery of photos of all the actors currently confirmed for the Middle Earth series, 37 Actors.

The full synopsis is as follows;

“Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history.

This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness.

Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.”Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings prequel will take place in the Second Age of Middle-earth, which spans a long period of time between the original Dark Lord Morgoth and the first defeat of his servant Sauron.”

About Howard Shore

Howard Shore was born in Canada and has composed the scores for over 80 films and is a consistent collaborator with director David Cronenberg. Winning Oscars, Golden Globes, Grammys, and in 2016, appointment as an Officer of the Order of Canada for his work towards the film and music industry. His film credits include The Hobbit trilogy, Twilight Saga, Hugo, The Departed, Pieces Of A Woman, Philadelphia, The Silence of the Lambs and many others. He composed unforgettable themes for The Fellowship of the Ring, Hobbiton, The Ring, and other characters and places in Middle Earth. Musicologist Doug Adams, who worked with Shore on the documentation of the scores, identifies over 90 motifs in the first trilogy. Shore has further adapted LOTR music into a concert Symphony.

(There is a rumor that Bear McCreary is also going to collaborate on the new show, with Shore setting the tone.)

In recent years Howard Shore has worked in film, yet his career began in TV. Shore’s big break was as music director for Saturday Night Live.

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