We have still a good two weeks before The Rings of Power brings its first ambitious $1 billion run to a close, but it seems that Amazon Studios is already pushing ahead to burn through even more of Jeff Bezos’ blank cheques.
According to a new report by The Hollywood Reporter, cameras started rolling today on the next batch of episodes in the U.K. The first season was shot in New Zealand, much like the Peter Jackson trilogies, which has hosted the heavenly landscape of Middle-earth for more than two decades. But perhaps due to cost-saving measures and convenience, Amazon has decided to shift its attention to Tolkien’s own home country of England, the place that inspired the rolling hills of Arda in the first place.
Indeed, production is now well underway at Bray Studios outside London, and if the crew doesn’t have to deal with another outbreak of COVID-19 and all the unpleasant restrictions accompanying it, perhaps season 2 will be shoot in a much more reasonable timeframe, say, the usual six months that other production companies usually take for principal photography, as opposed to the 18 months spent on the first season.
Whether it’s in New Zealand or the U.K., one thing is a guarantee; Amazon isn’t going to cut back on expenditure, especially now that their gamble with The Rings of Power has paid off in a reasonable manner. Racking up 1.3 billion minutes of watch-time is no meager feat, after all, and nor is dethroning the competition on HBO Max, at least as far as the streaming numbers are concerned.
For now, though, we’ll have the remaining two episodes of the show to look forward to on Oct. 7 and Oct. 14, respectively.
