It's safe to say The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power was a resounding success for Prime Video. In addition to being the streamer's top original program in every region, and driving more Prime Video subscribers than any previous program, the series also broke viewership records with 25 million viewers on release day, and 100 million viewers by the finale. Premiering at #1 on Nielsen's streaming chart, and with a finale that trended in 27 countries on Twitter for 426 cumulative hours, it's little wonder audiences are antsy to return to Middle-earth as quickly as possible.
But how long, exactly, are we talking? Collider's editor-in-chief Steve Weintraub recently caught up with Amazon Studios head Vernon Sanders to talk about the success of The Rings of Power, when naturally the conversation turned to when eager viewers might expect a second season of The Rings of Power. Fortunately, the series went into production back in October, so at least we know it's in progress.
As far as specific dates, that's a little less certain, with Sanders saying that its "more unlikely than likely" that Season 2 will air in 2023, meaning it'll probably be 2024 before we get to check back in with our favorite Elves, Dwarves, Harfoots, and humans. When asked about the timing of Season 2, and how soon it might be released, Sanders said:
I don’t know that I can say… It would be amazing if we could get Season 2 out within a year of Season 1’s release. It may take a smidge longer than that, but we're doing everything we can, and we're going to get better and faster as we go. Certainly, the production, what we've learned in Season 1, has taught us things that we're applying in Season 2, and so far we set a goal for ourselves of when we want that show to be released, and we are on track and on plan.
The Rings of Power Season 2 Release Date
With five seasons of The Rings of Power projected, however, Sanders is aware of both having to stay on task and not get carried away. That said, he did confirm that Season 2 will hit Prime Video quicker than Season 1 did, explaining, "How many years did it take us to make the first season? We're talking about three to four years. We will come back with Season 2 much faster than that, but I think it's a little bit of not getting ahead of ourselves."
As for stories beyond Season 2, Sanders admits that while the studio is committed to the vision for the story, and the groundwork is being laid for Season 3, they are not making formal, premature announcements. As he told us:
"There have been some conversations about Season 3, and we are making some investments to make sure that we are ready for Season 3. We are committed to JD (John D. Payne) and Patrick [McKay’s] vision for this, and I'm confident that we'll be making many more seasons to come, but we'll announce Season 3 when we're ready, even as we continue to put stakes in the ground for that. We're very excited about our future with this one."
Like with any show set in a location as fantastical as Middle-earth, naturally, The Rings of Power relies heavily on the talents of countless VFX artists to bring the story to life. When asked how the studio was dealing with industry-wide VFX struggles, especially as it pertained to getting each season out in a timely fashion, Sanders said:
Yeah, it's a good question. And we were incredibly fortunate that we had Ron Ames [VFX producer] come aboard the show to help us, and in some ways to create some industry firsts in the way in which we executed our special effects. I think that story hasn't, perhaps, gotten quite the attention it deserves. They've done amazing work. And so, because of that team, and quite frankly because of our partnership with AWS, not only have we been able to find some new innovations, but I think it's prepared us well for the future on the show.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 1 is streaming now on Prime Video. For more on The Rings of Power, here's our interview with Morfydd Clark and Charlie Vickers talking about filming the Sundering Seas sequence and their favorite LOTR scene.