LOTR on the Small Screen

(Shameless copycat thread? Pfft, I say!)

Let's say that, for whatever reason, PJ's LOTR trilogy never takes off. He finds another project dearer to his heart, New Line has cold feet (chumps!), whatever.

2012 rolls around and, seeing how well received Game of Thrones (we'll assume that it still gets made pretty much identically to OTL's version, even though I suppose you could argue it only happened because of LOTR's success) is, a brave, and money-loving, network takes a gamble and adapts Lord of the Rings as a sequence of three miniseries.

Who would you tap to write and direct it? Casting? What network would best air it? Go!
 

Thande

Donor
(we'll assume that it still gets made pretty much identically to OTL's version, even though I suppose you could argue it only happened because of LOTR's success)

This is the problem. I can tell you with almost 100% certainty that Game of Thrones would never have been picked up without the Lord of the Rings films. Flawed though those were, they were instrumental not only in convincing studios that there was money in big epic fantasy battle scenes (for better and for worse) but that fantasy was now seen as more respectable and adult, and that they should throw money at any potential property that might fit the bill. Harry Potter helped, of course, but at first that was seen as kiddie stuff as well, and without LOTR the films might have stayed that way, even if it doesn't fit the tone of the later books at all.

Imagine trying to persuade HBO to adapt Stirling's "Island in the Sea of Time" today and you get the idea of how unlikely it would be. But if a few years earlier there had been a big successful big-screen adaptation of Turtledove's "Worldwar", executives would know that there is an audience for AH.
 

mowque

Banned
But if a few years earlier there had been a big successful big-screen adaptation of Turtledove's "Worldwar", executives would know that there is an audience for AH.

I wonder if that would work. My gut says no, but then again I still can't believe people paid big money to see talking trees, I mean Ents.
 

Thande

Donor
I wonder if that would work. My gut says no, but then again I still can't believe people paid big money to see talking trees, I mean Ents.
I think a lot of them were paying money to see Orcs hit in the throat with arrows and Aragorn randomly fighting a Warg, I'm afraid.

Worldwar is probably too cerebral and complex (which sounds stupid to us, but it's what an exec would say, given it requires some knowledge of WW2 to understand and so on).
 

mowque

Banned
Back on topic.


Is LOTR really geared towards a TV series type of deal? I mean, there aren't enough bits of rising and falling action. Most of it is simply going from on place to another, and their aren't many 'mini-climaxes' to build shows or even seasons around.
 

Thande

Donor
Back on topic.


Is LOTR really geared towards a TV series type of deal? I mean, there aren't enough bits of rising and falling action. Most of it is simply going from on place to another, and their aren't many 'mini-climaxes' to build shows or even seasons around.

I think LOTR could work in a TV show, but then you don't get the epic scale for things like the battles or Gandalf vs the Balrog.

I recently re-read LOTR one chapter a day and they work better as self-contained "episodes" than you'd think.
 
No local library could get it. It is old and British.

Its not THAT old, and I would think a medium to large sized public library would have it, or be able to get it, considering the resurgence in the interest in Tolkien over the last decade or so, thanks to the films.
 

mowque

Banned
Its not THAT old, and I would think a medium to large sized public library would have it, or be able to get it, considering the resurgence in the interest in Tolkien over the last decade or so, thanks to the films.

You sound like I haven't tried. I am even marrying the local librarian. It just isn't happening.
 
The internet shall provide! It's 13 hour long segments instead of the original format of 26 half-hour long ones, but it looks to be complete (Haven't checked all videos though).

Found on YouTube here.
 
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