Amazon has decided to create its forthcoming Lord of the Rings TV series in the UK from the second season on. Albeit the first season was filmed in New Zealand, similarly as with Peter Jackson’s movies, Amazon presently says pre-production on season two will start right on time one year from now in the UK while season one after production proceeds in New Zealand through June.

It’s not satisfactory precisely where the series will be shot. Amazon is shipping the complex sets it worked for the first season over to the UK and is right now booking stages for them, as indicated by Deadline. The organization films a few Prime Video series in the UK as of now, including Neil Gaiman adaptations Good Omens and Anansi Boys.

The transition to the UK will not be without controversy. Creator J.R.R. Tolkien put together Middle-earth’s Shire with respect to his experiences living in rural England, yet Jackson’s distinctive portrayals in the films have made New Zealand’s landscapes similarly as firmly connected with the franchise and drove huge the travel industry to the country.

“We want to thank the people and the government of New Zealand for their hospitality and dedication and for providing The Lord of the Rings series with an incredible place to begin this epic journey,” Amazon Studios VP Vernon Sanders says in a statement. “We are grateful to the New Zealand Film Commission, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Tourism New Zealand, Auckland Unlimited, and others for their tremendous collaboration that supported the New Zealand film sector and the local economy during the production of Season One.”

Deadline reports that New Zealand’s severe treatment of the COVID-19 pandemic was a factor in Amazon’s decision. The greater part of the cast is British and has purportedly needed to remain in New Zealand for around two years in light of border limitations and quarantine rules. With a base in the UK, the cast will be a lot nearer to home, and the makers may likewise have the option to utilize different locations around Europe.

The first season of the Lord of the Rings show, which is set millennia before the original books and still doesn’t have a formal title, is set to come to Prime Video on September 2nd one year from now. This season alone is said to have cost the e-commerce giant $465 million to create, with Amazon getting a 20 percent tax credit from the New Zealand government.