The first image from Amazon Studios’ new, as yet untitled “Lord of the Rings” series was released. Image: Amazon Studio
The first episode of Amazon’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” series, which debuted on its Prime Video streaming service on Saturday, garnered more than 25 million viewers worldwide in its first day, according to the company.
The most costly television series ever is based on the appendices of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” books.
The head of Amazon Studios, Jennifer Salke, said in a statement that it was somehow appropriate that Tolkien’s works, which are among the most well-known of all time and are widely regarded as the actual foundation of the fantasy genre, have brought the company to this happy moment.
The rich founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, alluded to the value of the series to viewers during the U.K. debut of the show by stating that one of his kids had pleaded with him to “don’t eff this up” after learning that Amazon had purchased the story rights.
The show will continue to have weekly premieres on Amazon Prime.
HBO said earlier this month that the launch of its “House of the Dragon” prequel series was the biggest in the network’s history.
Clarification: This article has been modified to indicate that “The Rings of Power” is based on “The Lord of the Rings” appendices.
