The Lord of the Rings TV show release date and first image revealed

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Behold the Two Trees of Valinor

The Lord of the Rings TV show
(Image credit: Amazon)

The Lord of the Rings TV show release date has been revealed – and you may have just enough time to finally get through The Silmarillion before it airs.

Amazon announced that the original series (which is still officially untitled) will debut on Prime Video on September 2, 2022, with new episodes rolling out weekly. The series is set millennia before The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, following a set of characters whom Amazon teases will be "both new and familiar," with a story that revolves around the "re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth." 

Just like The Boys and other Prime Video originals, you'll be able to watch the entire series as part of an Amazon Prime subscription.

“As Bilbo says, ‘Now I think I am quite ready to go on another journey.’ Living and breathing Middle-earth these many months has been the adventure of a lifetime. We cannot wait for fans to have the chance to do so as well,” showrunners and executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay said in a joint message.

The announcement also includes our first look at the series via a single image: it depicts a lone figure in a white cloak on a grassy hillside, looking out toward a grand city to their left. To their right, we can see what very much looks like the Two Trees of Valinor – which were long since destroyed in Bilbo's time – standing as shining, ethereal titans in the far distance.

These trees literally became the sun and the moon after they were devoured by Shelob's mother Ungoliant, so they're pretty important to Middle-earth. And considering the fact that the series will follow evil returning to this idyllic world, you probably shouldn't expect the two of them to remain standing tall by the time the series finale airs.

Amazon says filming for the Lord of the Rings TV show wrapped up in New Zealand today, which gives the Prime Video just over a year to bring the rest of the fantasy world to life. Also: Amazon finalized the cast for its Lord of the Rings TV series in early July month with four new additions.

Connor Sheridan
Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and was formerly a staff writer at GamesRadar.