Lord of the Rings Show Synopsis Confirms Setting, Timeline Details

Amazon's Lord of the Rings series takes place thousands of years before the movies, according to the show's synopsis. The acclaimed Peter Jackson-helmed trilogy based on author J.R.R. Tolkien's epic fantasy novels was a box office smash, leading Jackson to direct three more movies based on Tolkien's The Hobbit. The franchise has also spawned a multi-season TV series from Amazon that is currently in the works.

After production was shut down at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, filming on the adventure series is now underway in New Zealand, where Jackson's films were also shot. Since the show was first announced three years ago, there has been plenty of speculation regarding where and when the show will take place, and which Lord of the Rings characters could be featured. It was reported back in 2019 that the series would take place long before the events of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The new Middle-earth show will renewed for a second season. Now more details are emerging about the adventure series as a synopsis has been revealed.

In a synopsis first reported by TheOneRing.net, the Amazon series is confirmed to take place thousands of years before the events of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. According to the synopsis, the epic series will introduce new characters, while reuniting fans with familiar faces. Read the synopsis for the show in the space below:

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.

While their characters have been revealed yet, an ensemble cast has been announced for the show. Recently, 20 new cast were announced, including Power's Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Heart of the Sea's Benjamin Walker and Westworld's Peter Mullan, along with many actors from New Zealand. Season 1 and 2 are currently being filmed back-to-back in New Zealand, with 8-10 episodes per season.

It's clear that fans are in for a very different side of Middle-earth than they have seen before. Now that the series is confirmed to explore the previously unvisited location of Númenor, fans are likely anticipating the show even more, as Númenor is often compared to the legends of Atlantis. Now that the synopsis has been revealed, hopefully Amazon will soon tease at some characters expected to appear in The Lord of the Rings show.