Amazon acquired the television rights forThe Lord of the Rings from theTolkien Estate in November 2017, making a five-season production commitment worth at leastUS$1 billion. This would make it themost expensive television series ever made. Payne and McKay were hired in July 2018 for their first credited roles. Their story bridges Second Age references in the appendices with original material, developed in consultation with the estate and Tolkien lore experts. Per Amazon's deal with the estate, the series is not a continuation ofPeter Jackson'sThe Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) andThe Hobbit (2012–2014) film trilogies. Despite this, the producers intended to evoke the films using similar production design, younger versions of film characters, and a main theme byHoward Shore who composed the music for both trilogies.Bear McCreary composed the series' original score.
A large international cast was hired and filming for the eight-episodefirst season took place in New Zealand, where the films were produced, from February 2020 to August 2021. This included a production break of several months due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. Amazon moved production for future seasons to the United Kingdom. Filming for thesecond season took place there from October 2022 to June 2023, finishing amid the2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Athird season is in production.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premiered on September 1, 2022. The first season was released through October and was the most-watched of any Prime Video original series according to Amazon. It received generally positive reviews from critics, particularly for its visuals and designs, but there were criticisms for the writing and pacing. The second season was released from August to October 2024. It was met with lower viewership than the first season and a similar critical response.
Set thousands of years before the novelsThe Hobbit (1937) andThe Lord of the Rings (1954–55) byJ. R. R. Tolkien, the series is based on the author's history ofMiddle-earth. It begins during a time of relative peace and covers the major events ofMiddle-earth'sSecond Age: the forging of theRings of Power, the rise of the Dark LordSauron, the fall of the island kingdom ofNúmenor, and the last alliance betweenElves andMen.[1] These events take place over thousands of years in Tolkien's works but are condensed for the series.[2]
Amazon officially confirmed a third season in February 2025. It begins several years after the second season at the height of the "War of the Elves and Sauron", and depicts Sauron's efforts to create theOne Ring which he believes will give him the power to win the war and conquer all of Middle-earth.Charlotte Brändström,Sanaa Hamri, andStefan Schwartz will each direct multiple episodes.[3] Thewriters' room includes Justin Doble, Ben Tagoe,Ava Wong Davies, Constance Cheng, Jonathan Wilson, Griff Jones, Sarah Anson, and showrunnersJ. D. Payne and Patrick McKay.[4] Filming began by May 2025 andwrapped in October.[5][6][7]
Morfydd Clark asGaladriel: An Elven warrior who believes evil is returning to Middle-earth.[2] She is given the Ring of PowerNenya in the second season.[8]
Megan Richards asPoppy Proudfellow: An orphaned Harfoot and Nori's best friend,[9] who travels with Nori and the Stranger in the second season[15]
Robert Aramayo asElrond: A half-Elven politician.[2] As a half-Elf, Elrond had the choice to remain immortal or live a mortal life. He chose to be immortal while his brotherElros chose to be mortal.[11]
Benjamin Walker asGil-galad: The High King of the Elves who rules from the realm ofLindon.[16] Walker highlighted the character's "odd gift of foresight. [He can] feel the pulse of evil rising."[11]
Nazanin Boniadi asBronwyn: A human healer and single mother who owns an apothecary in theSouthlands. She is in love with the Elf Arondir.[2] Boniadi chose not to return after the first season.[18]
Tyroe Muhafidin asTheo: Bronwyn's son,[19] who discovers abroken sword that is the key to turning the Southlands into the dark land ofMordor[20]
Charles Edwards asCelebrimbor: The Elven-smith who forges the Rings of Power.[2] He is the greatest Elvish craftsmen since his grandfatherFëanor. Edwards described the character as vain and ambitious.[14]
Daniel Weyman asGandalf: One of theIstari (Wizards) who falls from the sky in a flaming meteor and befriends Nori.[21] Initially known as "The Stranger", he is revealed to be Gandalf in the second-season finale.[22][23]
Sophia Nomvete asDisa: Durin IV's wife and the princess of Khazad-dûm.[2] Arthur described the two characters as "the power couple of Middle-earth".[24]
Lloyd Owen asElendil: A sailor from the island kingdom of Númenor and Isildur's father who will eventually be a leader in the last alliance between Elves and Men[27]
Maxim Baldry asIsildur: Elendil's son who will eventually become a warrior and king.[2] The writers wanted to adapt Isildur's story in a way that ended in tragedy rather than foolishness.[17]
Ema Horvath asEärien: Elendil's daughter and Isildur's sister who joins the Númenórean Builder's Guild[29]
Leon Wadham asKemen: Pharazôn's son.[27] Wadham said the character was the privileged child of a powerful parent.[30]
Ciarán Hinds as theDark Wizard: One of the Istari who has been corrupted.[31][32] The showrunners denied speculation that he isSaruman due to that character's corruption not coming until later in Tolkien's history.[23][32]
Peter Mullan asDurin III: The king of Khazad-dûm,[33] who falls into madness in the second season after being given a Ring of Power[14]
In July 2017,a lawsuit was settled betweenWarner Bros., the studio behindPeter Jackson'sThe Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) andThe Hobbit (2012–2014) film trilogies, andthe estate of authorJ. R. R. Tolkien upon whose books those films were based. With the two sides "on better terms", they began offering the rights to a potential television series based on Tolkien'sThe Lord of the Rings (1954–55) to several outlets, includingAmazon,Netflix, andHBO,[34] with a starting price ofUS$200 million.[2] HBOpitched a remake of theLord of the Rings films which the estate was not interested in. Netflix pitched multiple connected series focusing on characters such asAragorn andGandalf which "completely freaked out the estate". Amazon did not pitch a specific story but promised to work closely with the estate to "protect Tolkien's legacy", which the estate felt they were unable to do with previous adaptations.[35] Amazon emerged as the frontrunner by September 2017 and entered negotiations.[36][37] Uncommonly for programming developments, Amazon CEOJeff Bezos was personally involved with the negotiations.[37] Bezos was a personal fan ofThe Lord of the Rings,[2] and had previously givenAmazon Studios a mandate to develop an ambitious fantasy series of comparable scale to HBO'sGame of Thrones (2011–2019).[34]
On November 13, 2017, Amazon acquired the global television rights for close toUS$250 million. Industry commentators described this amount—before any production costs and without any creative talent attached to the project—as "insane",[34] although some considered the project to be more of a reputational risk for Amazon than a financial one due to Bezos's wealth.[2] Amazon's streaming serviceAmazon Prime Video gave a multi-season commitment to the series that was believed to be for five seasons, with the possibility of a spin-off series as well. Despite this, Prime Video had to give a formalgreenlight to future seasons before work could begin on them.[38] The budget was expected to be in the range ofUS$100–150 million per season, and was likely to eventually exceedUS$1 billion which would make it themost expensive television series ever made.[34][36]Warner Bros. Television was not involved in the project because Amazon Studios wanted to produce it themselves. Amazon was working with the Tolkien Estate, theTolkien Trust,HarperCollins, andNew Line Cinema. New Line, the Warner Bros. division that produced the films,[34] was reportedly included to allow the use of material from the films in the series.[36] The estate imposed creative restrictions on the series,[34][39] and the deal stipulated that production begin within two years.[36]
Thefirst season was reported in May 2018 to be focusing on a young Aragorn.[40] Jennifer Salke, the head of Amazon Studios, said a month later that the deal for the series had only just been officially completed.[41] The studio met more than 30 potential writers,[42] including theRusso brothers andAnthony McCarten,[35] and asked for story pitches based on anything in Tolkien'sThe Hobbit (1937),The Lord of the Rings, and itsappendices. These included prequel stories focused on characters such as Aragorn,Gimli, and Gandalf.[43][44]J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay pitched a series that explored the major events ofMiddle-earth'sSecond Age, thousands of years beforeThe Lord of the Rings, including the forging of theRings of Power, the rise of the Dark LordSauron, the fall of the island kingdom ofNúmenor, and the last alliance betweenElves andMen.[17] These events were covered in a five-minute prologue in theLord of the Rings films,[45] and the pair wanted to expand this into "50 hours of television".[2] Unlike the other writers being interviewed, Payne and McKay had only done unproduced or uncredited writing. They were championed to Amazon by directorJ. J. Abrams who worked with them onan unproducedStar Trek film,[2][35] and were hired to develop the series in July 2018.[46] Payne said their pitch felt like "an amazing, untold story" that was "worthy of Tolkien",[43] and McKay added, "We didn't want to do a side thing. A spinoff or the origin story of something else. We wanted to find a huge Tolkienian mega epic, and Amazon" agreed.[47]
Jackson said in December 2018 that he and his film producing partners would read some scripts for the series and offer notes on them, but he later stated that this did not happen. Amazon explained that the deal to acquire the television rights forThe Lord of the Rings required them to keep the series distinct from Jackson's films, and Tolkien's estate were reportedly against Jackson's involvement in the project.[48] Payne and McKay were confirmed asshowrunners and executive producers in July 2019, when the project's full creative team was revealed. Additional executive producers included Lindsey Weber, Callum Greene,J. A. Bayona, Belén Atienza, Justin Doble,Jason Cahill,Gennifer Hutchison, Bruce Richmond, andSharon Tal Yguado.[49][50] Prime Video officially ordered asecond season in November 2019,[38] and announced the series' full title,The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, in January 2022. Payne and McKay felt the title could "live on the spine of a book next to J. R. R. Tolkien's other classics".[1] The showrunners initially considered using a different subtitle for each season.[51]
Amazon spentUS$465 million producing the first season in New Zealand,[52] and then moved production on subsequent seasons to the United Kingdom.[53] A third season had not been ordered by the second season's premiere in August 2024, leading to speculation about the series' future amid concerns about its quality and viewership.[54][4] When the showrunners were asked if they had any contingency plans should Amazon decide to end the series before their five-season plan was complete, McKay stated: "We're not anticipating that. We're making our show and going all the way."[55] Amazon was soon reported to be committed to the five-season plan,[54] and thethird season was officially confirmed by Prime Video in February 2025.[3] That October, following the departures of Salke and television co-head Vernon Sanders from Amazon Studios, Lesley Goldberg ofThe Ankler discussed industry questions about whether the series should be cancelled by Amazon. She reported that production costs for the second and third seasons had been "dramatically reduced" due to the UK's tax incentives, that viewer retention was improved with the second season, and that Amazon had to pay aUS$20 million "kill fee" to the Tolkien estate for each season that was not produced out of the five season plan.[56]
The Lord of the Rings andThe Hobbit are set during the Third Age of Middle-earth, while the First and Second Ages are primarily explored inThe Silmarillion (1977),Unfinished Tales (1980), andThe History of Middle-earth (1983–1996). Because Amazon only acquired the television rights toThe Lord of the Rings andThe Hobbit, the writers had to identify all of the references to the Second Age in those books and create a story that bridged those passages. These are mostly in the appendices ofThe Lord of the Rings.[17] The estate was prepared to veto any changes from Tolkien's narrative,[39] including anything that contradicted what he wrote in other works.[17] The writers were free to add characters and details,[39] and worked with the estate andTolkien scholars to ensure these were "Tolkienian".[17] They referenced letters that Tolkien wrote about his mythology for additional context on the setting and characters.[17][57]Simon Tolkien, a novelist and the grandson of J. R. R. Tolkien, helped develop the story and character arcs. He is credited as a "series consultant".[58] Tolkien scholarTom Shippey worked on the series early on,[59] but left after revealing details without permission.[2] Griff Jones was hired as a Tolkien "loremaster", approachingThe Lord of the Rings and its appendices like a historical advisor would treat real history.[60]: 107
Payne and McKay knew the series was expected to run for five seasons and were able to plan elements of the final season, including the final shot, while working on the first.[61] The Second Age takes place over thousands of years in Tolkien's history; the writers were concerned that human characters would be frequently dying due to their relatively short lifespans, and that key humans from the end of the Second Age would not be introduced until late in the series. They considered using non-linear storytelling to solve this issue, but felt that would prevent the audience from emotionally investing in the series. Instead, they compressed the timeline so all the major events of the Second Age take place within a short period of time.[2][62] The Tolkien estate approved this change, as long as the major events still took place in the same order as in Tolkien's history,[2][63] and the showrunners felt they were still respecting the "spirit and feeling" of Tolkien's writings despite this change.[62] They structured the series so each season would be built around several "major tentpole moments" from the Second Age.[64]
Because they were unable to adapt dialogue from Tolkien's Second Age stories, the writers attempted to repurpose dialogue that they did have access to.[17] Leith McPherson returned from theHobbit films as dialect coach and guided the use ofTolkien's fictional languages in the series. She established different dialects for each culture of Middle-earth.[65][66]: 46 Carl F. Hostetter, a Tolkien scholar and the head of theElvish Linguistic Fellowship, also consulted on the use of Tolkien's languages and provided translations.[59][67] After the crew for the first season was revealed to includeJennifer Ward-Lealand as anintimacy coordinator, Tolkien fans expressed concern that it would includeGame of Thrones-style graphic sex and violence.[68] Payne and McKay said this would not be the case and the series would be family-friendly. They hoped to evoke the tone of Tolkien's books, which can be "intense, sometimes quite political, sometimes quite sophisticated—but it's also heartwarming and life-affirming and optimistic."[2] They felt it was important to embrace the hope and earnestness in Tolkien's works,[69] and said they did not want to be influenced by contemporary politics, aspiring to tell a timeless story that matched Tolkien's own intention to create a mythology that would always be applicable.[62]
The showrunners disagreed with suggestions that the series was only "vaguely connected" to Tolkien's writings. McKay said in August 2022 that they felt it was "deeply, deeply connected" to Tolkien's work and a "story we're stewarding that was here before us and was waiting in those books" to be told.[70] He elaborated on their position in August 2024, explaining that they wanted to honor the tone, themes, and spirit of the source material but their priority was to make an entertaining television series that worked for casual viewers as well as Tolkien fans. He said they chose to tell a story in the Second Age because Tolkien "never wrote a fixed version" of the time period and they felt they could create an "epic version of this story".[71] A disclaimer is featured in the end credits stating that some elements are "inspired by, though not contained in, the original source material".[72]
Boniadi chose not to return for the second season and her characterBronwyn was not recast.[18] In early December 2022,Sam Hazeldine was revealed to have replacedJoseph Mawle in the role ofAdar for the second season. Amazon also announced the casting of Gabriel Akuwudike, Yasen "Zates" Atour,Ben Daniels, Amelia Kenworthy, Nia Towle, andNicholas Woodeson.[79] Daniels portraysCírdan, a character who briefly appears in the films.[80][81] A week later, Amazon further announced the casting of Oliver Alvin-Wilson,Stuart Bowman, Gavi Singh Chera, William Chubb,Kevin Eldon,Will Keen,Selina Lo, andCalam Lynch.[82] Amazon announced the casting ofCiarán Hinds,Rory Kinnear, andTanya Moodie in March 2023.[83] The second-season finale reveals that Weyman is portraying an earlier version ofGandalf in the series.[23] In February 2025, Amazon announced the casting ofJamie Campbell Bower andEddie Marsan for the third season.[84] In June, Amazon further announced the casting of Andrew Richardson,Zubin Varla, and Adam Young.[85]
IllustratorJohn Howe, one of the main conceptual designers on the film trilogies, returned to work on the series. He said in August 2019 that it would remain faithful to the films' designs.[86] In August 2022, Amazon explained that the deal with Tolkien's estate required the company to keep the series distinct from Jackson's films,[48] though the showrunners still intended for it to be visually consistent with them.[17] Also returning from Jackson's films to work on the series were costume designerKate Hawley and special effects companyWētā Workshop.[17][87] Wētā provided props, weapons, and prosthetics for the first season.[66]: 29 [88]
Rick Heinrichs was initially announced as production designer,[49] but was soon replaced by Ramsey Avery.[89] The showrunners gave Avery several "guideposts" when he joined the series: they wanted the series to feel like a real world that the characters lived in rather than a fantasy world; as many of the sets needed to be built for real as possible, using visual effects only when necessary; the audience should be able to easily identify the different cultures of Middle-earth; and the series had to be true to Tolkien.[90] A "war room" was assembled where thedesign language for each culture was defined.[91] The series' designs reflect that it is set thousands of years earlier than the films and depicts a "golden age" of Middle-earth.[89] Avery and Hawley did not return for the second season.[92][93] They were replaced by Kristian Milsted and Luca Mosca, respectively.[94]
In June 2018, Salke said the series could be produced in New Zealand, where the film trilogies were made, but Amazon was also willing to shoot in other countries as long as they could "provide those locations in a really authentic way, because we want it to look incredible".[73] Amazon confirmed in September 2019 that filming for the first season would take place in New Zealand.[95]Scotland had also been considered as a location.[96][97] Filming for the season began inAuckland in February 2020,[74][98] with J. A. Bayona directing the first two episodes.[99] Production was placed on hold in mid-March due to theCOVID-19 pandemic,[100] and this shutdown segued into an already planned production break that allowed footage from the first two episodes to be reviewed and writing on the second season to begin.[101] Filming resumed at the end of September.[102]Wayne Che Yip andCharlotte Brändström directed the rest of the season's episodes.[103][104] Around a third of filming took place on location around New Zealand.[87] Production for the first season officiallywrapped on August 2, 2021.[105]
The week after filming ended for the first season, Amazon announced that it was moving production of the series to the United Kingdom starting with the second season. Factors that played a role in the change included Amazon already heavily investing in UK studio space for other productions as well as New Zealand's restrictive pandemic-era border policies.[53] Tolkien's estate also wanted the series to be filmed in the UK since Tolkien was inspired by locations there when writing his books.[106] Pre-production for the second season was expected to begin in the UK in the second quarter of 2022,[107] taking place concurrently with post-production for the first season which was continuing in New Zealand until June 2022.[53] Filming on the second season began on October 3,[108] with Brändström,Sanaa Hamri, and Louise Hooper directing.[109] Filming took place primarily atBray Film Studios andBovingdon Airfield outside of London,[107] with location filming around the UK and in theCanary Islands.[110][111] Production for the season wrapped in June 2023,[92] amid the2023 Writers Guild of America strike.[112]
Production on the third season moved toShepperton Studios inSurrey,[3] after Amazon signed a long-term deal for exclusive use of new facilities at Shepperton in 2022.[113] Pre-production was underway there by February 2025.[3] Filming was reported to be starting on April 30,[114] and was confirmed to have begun by May.[5][6] Production wrapped at the end of October,[7] with Brändström, Hamri, andStefan Schwartz directing.[3]
Amazon provided unlimitedcloud-based storage for the production, allowing all technical data and footage to be accessible to anyone working on the series around the world. It was the first production to be completely cloud-based,[115] which became crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic.[116] The primary visual effects vendors for the first season wereWētā FX, returning from Jackson's films, andIndustrial Light & Magic (ILM).[117] All the vendors were overseen by visual effects supervisorJason Smith.[118] The season's effects include characters appearing at different sizes,[118] augmented environments,[119] fantasy creatures,[120] and magic.[121]
The opening title sequence was directed by Katrina Crawford and Mark Bashore of the creative studio Plains of Yonder. They did not see any material from the series when starting work and instead took inspiration from Tolkien.[122] Based onthe author's creation story in which the world is created from music, the pair suggested the title sequence be "built from the world of sound".[123] They investigatedcymatics, using a homemadeChladni plate and slow motion footage to test what shapes could be formed from sand particles using the vibrations of different sounds. These includedGregorian chants, Angelic music,rock and roll, and whale calls.[122][124] For the final sequence, Crawford and Bashore used a 2 feet (0.61 m) wide rig and programmed tones to create basic patterns such as diamonds and swirls. These were filmed practically,[123][124] and then the Plains of Yonder visual effects team attempted to replicate the "flawed, wild motion" of the real photography for shots that feature iconography from Tolkien's writings, including theTwo Trees of Valinor; the eight-pointed star associated with the characterFëanor; different parts of Middle-earth's geography; and each set of the Rings of Power—nine human rings, seven Dwarven rings, three Elven rings, and the One Ring.[122][123][125] The sequence took seven months to complete.[122] It was updated for the second season, introducing red sand grains that form "evil tendrils" to indicate Sauron's influence, as well as imagery that represents theDoors of Durin,the Balrog, andMorgoth's crown.[126][127]
Howard Shore, the composer for theLord of the Rings andHobbit films, was reported to be in discussions with Amazon about working on the series in September 2020. He was said to be interested in developing musical themes but not necessarily composing the entire score.[128] Shore was confirmed to be in talks for the series a year later,[129] when composerBear McCreary was reported to be involved as well.[128] Their hiring was officially announced in July 2022, with McCreary composing the score and Shore writing the main title theme.[130] McCreary was contractually prohibited from quoting any themes that Shore wrote for the films.[131] He said the series was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to work on such an ambitious score, and he hoped to create a "continuity of concept" between the series and Shore's work on the films. He wrote more than 15 new themes for the series.[132]
Early promotional work for the series on social media used several maps of Middle-earth's Second Age, as well as excerpts from the novelThe Lord of the Rings.[39][133] These maps were designed and created by illustrator John Howe and overseen by Tolkien scholar Tom Shippey to ensure they were accurate to Tolkien's works.[133] Howe and Shippey spent a lot of time working on the maps, which were based on maps of Númenor during the Second Age as well as maps of the Third Age that were created by Tolkien's sonChristopher. Despite their efforts, HarperCollins received complaints from fans shortly after the maps were released online regarding two mistakes that were made on them.[86]
Amazon considered the reveal of the series' title in January 2022 to be crucial as the beginning of the series' marketing campaign. The studio released an announcement video in which the letters of the title are physically cast from molten metal while an excerpt of theRing Verse poem fromThe Lord of the Rings is read in voiceover. The video was directed by Klaus Obermeyer, who worked with special effects supervisor Lee Nelson under advisement by veteran special effects supervisorDouglas Trumbull.[134] They filmed the video withfoundryman Landon Ryan in late 2021 in Los Angeles, after experimenting with different combinations of metals,sparkler dust, argon pours, and liquid hydrogen. The final metal was a mixture of bronze and aluminum which was poured into molds of compressed sand that could be used multiple times. The pouring was filmed at 5,000 frames per second with aPhantom Flex4K camera so it could be shown in ultra-slow motion.[135] For the final title card, the forged letters were inscribed with Elvish writing and placed on a large piece ofredwood. Staff from Tolkien fan websiteTheOneRing.net and entertainment journalists were invited by Amazon to watch the filming of the video.[134][135] Prologue Films providedprevisualization for the sequence as well as compositing and additional visual effects. They recreated the final title card digitally, taking care to maintain the "integrity of the live action shots and lighting".[136]
A new book chronicling the events of Middle-earth's Second Age was announced in June 2022. TitledThe Fall of Númenor, it was compiled and edited by Tolkien scholarBrian Sibley from J. R. R. and Christopher Tolkien's writings about the Second Age. The book features new illustrations byAlan Lee. It was published in November 2022 to capitalize on new interest in the topic arising from the first season's release.[137] Similarly, a new edition of Tolkien's poetry collectionThe Adventures of Tom Bombadil (1962) was released in August 2024 to coincide with the second season's release.[138]
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premiered on Prime Video in the United States on September 1, 2022.[139] Episodes are released in more than 240 countries and territories at the same time as the US.[139][140]
Amazon announced thatThe Rings of Power had been watched by 25 million viewers globally in the first 24 hours that the first two episodes were available on Prime Video, the service's biggest premiere ever. This was the first time Amazon had publicly stated viewership data for Prime Video and the company did not specify how much of an episode a user needed to watch for them to count as a viewer.[141] By December 2022, the series had been watched by more than 100 million viewers globally and was Prime Video's most watched series ever. Sanders called it "a tremendous success",[142] and explained that, in addition to viewership, the company measured its success based on new signups to Prime Video and impacts on other areas of its business such as retail and music;[55] for example, Sanders said the first season led to spikes in the sales of Tolkien's books.[142] In April 2023, Kim Masters atThe Hollywood Reporter reported that the season was only finished by 37 percent of its initial US viewers and 45 percent of international viewers. Salke said attempts to paint the series as less than a success did not reflect Amazon's internal discussions.[143] In October 2024, she said the first season had been watched by more than 150 million viewers,[144] and it was still the most-watched season on Prime Video globally.[54]
Third-party analytics companies estimated that there was a significant drop in interest from the premiere episodes of the first season to those of the second, withSamba TV andLuminate both calculating around half as much US viewership for the second season's premiere compared to the first's.[145][146] Amazon said the second season was watched by 40 million viewers globally in its first 11 days of release, making it one of the top five most watched television seasons on Prime Video in that timeframe.[147] This increased to 55 million viewers ahead of the season finale, and the company expected more "growth and momentum" for the season over time.[144]James Hibberd ofThe Hollywood Reporter said Amazon's "spin" on the second season's initial viewership was that a drop was inevitable due to how high the first season's numbers were.[54] The company said the series had particular success in markets outside of the US,[147] including the UK where it performed "disproportionately well".[148] By February 2025, the second season ofThe Rings of Power was Prime Video's most-watched returning season by number of hours watched.[3] That October, Lesley Goldberg ofThe Ankler reported that the second season was finished by 10 percent more of its initial viewers than the first season was.[56]
Parrot Analytics calculated that the series brought in $367 million in subscriber revenue for Prime Video by the end of 2024. This was ahead of fellow Prime Video fantasy seriesThe Wheel of Time ($360 million), which premiered a year beforeThe Rings of Power in 2021. However,The Wheel of Time was considered to have a higher return on investment due to its smaller budget at around $80 million for its first season.[149]
Thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes calculated that 84% of 489 critics reviews for the first season were positive and the average rating was 8 out of 10. The website's critics consensus reads, "It may not yet be the One Show to Rule Them All, butThe Rings of Power enchants with its opulent presentation and deeply-felt rendering of Middle-earth."[150]Metacritic assigned aweighted average score of 71 out of 100 based on 40 reviews, indicating a "generally favorable" response.[151] Particular praise went to the visuals and designs, while the overall structure, slow pacing, and reliance onmystery box–style storytelling were criticized.[154]
For the second season, Rotten Tomatoes calculated that 84% of 170 critics reviews were positive and the average rating was 7.25 out of 10. The website's critics consensus reads, "The Rings of Power's sophomore season discovers new virtues while retaining some of its predecessor's vices, overall making for a more kinetic journey through Tolkien's world."[152] Metacritic assigned a score of 67 out of 100 based on 25 reviews, again indicating a "generally favorable" response.[153] Critics broadly felt that the series' production value remained high in the second season, with praise for the visuals, design work, and McCreary's score. The season was also seen to be more confident in its storytelling than the first, though some critics said the series still had pacing issues and too many storylines.[155][156][157]
The series' early marketing led to a "cacophony" of online fan discourse, including concerns about accuracy to Tolkien.[158] After it premiered, the audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes was considerably lower than the critics rating. This was partially attributed toreview bombing for "perceived cultural or political issues", but also to fan concerns about the story, acting, and pacing.[159] These online responses were analyzed and discussed,[160][161][162] with particular coverage going to complaints about the casting of non-white actors.[158][163][164] Many commentators characterized this backlash as being racist.[165] Amazon did a study with thousands of audience members to get insight into their thoughts on each episode of the first season.[166] The day after the second season premiered, its audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes was nearly double that of the first season.[155] Sanders said the second season had not faced the same "racist hostility" as the first and Amazon found the majority of viewers to be open minded, engaged with the series, and not following an "agenda that's separate from the show itself".[167]
