As The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power prepares to enter its third season, a popular fantasy author is now calling attention to the frustrations around his series’ own live-action developments, which were once expected to be funneled through Prime Video.
Literature has forever been a foundational medium that movies and television have looked to when pulling words off pages and spinning them into real-world adventures. Most famously, The Lord of the Rings was a tremendous trailblazer for fantasy epics being translated into multi-picture adaptations, leaving wonderful worlds in their wake. The Lord of the Rings has continued to establish its place in pop culture decades on, with no signs of slowing down. Such a steadfast presence has personally upset Garth Nix, whose fantasy world has allegedly been sidelined by Prime Video in favor of The Rings of Power.
In an exclusive interview with CBR‘s Rebecca Budgen at MCM London Comic Con 2026, Nix broke his silence on the once-to-be streaming series and movie that’s now been left with an undecided fate. Nix was the one to remind readers and fantasy fans alike that he was once supposed to introduce his writing to big and small screens alike, though there’s still uncertainty about whether and when his writing will manifest as a full-fledged production. Nix also criticized The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power‘s overall quality when expressing his own displeasure.
“It’s been set up at various times. Sabriel as a feature film and The Old Kingdom as a series with Amazon Studios… There was a feature screenplay co-written by me for Amazon. I also co-wrote a pilot episode and a series bible outline, which they chose not to carry on, partly because they bought the Tolkien property, which ended up with Rings of Power, which I think is very bad unfortunately…”
Nix continued to break down his plans for the novels to come to life. “I wish they had chosen to make The Old Kingdom series instead. But obviously, studios make those kinds of decisions. It has been set up one more time since then, but didn’t go anywhere. I’ve had a couple of discussions this last year with two separate directors, both of whom I think would be good. Both times were talking about a feature film with Sabriel as a foundation to do other stuff, but neither of those had proceeded. Getting the budget required for live-action is a really big ask. There is always talk. There is always interest… My film and television agent in Los Angeles believes that one day we will get the right deal, and it will happen.”
Is The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power Really That Bad?
Nix’s criticism of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is subjective and an opinion that’s his to be said, though early reactions to Season 3 seem to contrast the fantasy novelist’s personal beliefs. Select media critics were given an early look at the first couple of episodes in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 3, in which response, Nerdist Editor-in-Chief Rotem Rusak said, “Eps 1 & 2 are AMAZING. I have been a huge fan of The Rings of Power throughout, but the start of this season is not only some of the series’ best work, but TV’s best.”
Chris Killian from ComicBook.com added, “I’ve seen the first couple of episodes of [The Rings of Power Season 3] and no spoilers, but the first 2 episodes are bangers, and this series is getting better and better as it goes on. Charlie Vickers as Sauron is a highlight; he just oozes evil.” While early reactions may not have the same foresight when reporting on the rest of the season’s strengths or weaknesses, optimistic voices are taking to the internet to seemingly announce a positive shift in the high fantasy series’ middling execution.
Sabriel and The Old Kingdom series can be read wherever books are found; no further comment has been made on their live-action potential.
- Release Date
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September 1, 2022
- Network
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Amazon Prime Video
- Showrunner
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John D. Payne, Patrick McKay, Louise Hooper, Charlotte Brändström, Wayne Yip
- Directors
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J.A. Bayona, Sanaa Hamri
- Writers
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Patrick McKay, John D. Payne, J.R.R. Tolkien, Justin Doble, Jason Cahill, Gennifer Hutchison, Stephany Folsom, Nicholas Adams
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