Lord Of The Rings: Rings Of Power Season 2 Delayed Because Filming Keeps Killing Animals
Filming on The Rings of Power's second season is delayed because of concerns over impact on the local wildlife.
Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 is currently filming in the Swinley Forest in Berkshire, which is land owned by King Charles. Apparently, the production is causing issues with the local ecosystem, as reported by The Mirror. According to article, locals are worried that filming is affecting wildlife, and a planning report said that it would be almost “inevitable” that there would be negative effects on insects like bees, sawflies, and ants.
The complaints in Berkshire aren’t the only environmental concerns surrounding The Rings of Power Season 2 production, as the report mentions that the show’s filming in New Zealand has led to complaints of high carbon emissions and waste leveled against Amazon. Reportedly, the Guardian also received a leaked memo from the show’s sustainability team that said the environmental impact of the show is “enormous.” While it’s not necessarily surprising that this multi-hundred-million dollar show is sucking up resources and causing environmental issues, it doesn’t really comport with Amazon‘s goal to be net zero by 2040.
Despite these issues, there’s no reason to believe that The Rings of Power Season 2 won’t enjoy similar success to the first season of the series. The first season did incredible numbers for Amazon, with a reported 100 million viewers globally. This would make the series the most-watched Prime Video series.
However, The Hollywood Reporter said in April that 37 percent of US viewers finished the season and 45 percent of international viewers finished the season. This prompted Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke to say that this data didn’t comport with Amazon’s internal reports. It remains to be seen if The Rings of Power Season 2 will bring in the same number, whatever the real numbers are.
The Rings Of Power Season 2 will also face the obstacle of winning over audiences, as the first season saw a pretty divisive reception. While the first season got mostly warm reviews from critics, audience reaction was mixed. Some of the negative reception was review bombing by racist trolls, but other more level-headed viewers took umbrage with the show’s pace and loose adaption of the beloved J.R.R Tolkien source material.
One thing is clear, Amazon is heavily invested in The Rings of Power Season 2 and they’re going to do their best to press the series forward. Unless the second season is a total critical and commercial failure, we will likely be seeing more seasons. There are apparently five seasons planned out in total, with the estimated cost of those seasons approaching an astounding $1 billion.
There’s no word yet on when The Rings of Power Season 2 will come out, but you can stream the first season now on Prime Video.
