Patrick McKay, a showrunner on Amazon Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, revealed that future seasons of the show may branch out into another world.
In The Official The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Podcast, McKay explained that there is a whole lot more to the show's potential universe than was explored in Season 1. "One of the first conversations we had with Amazon about this is the feeling that Tolkien's world was much vaster than the limited geography traversed in the Lord of the Rings books and in The Hobbit," he explained. "And that there are great islands to the west in Númenor at this time. There's Valinor even further west and then east there's an entire continent Rhûn that has never been visited and never explored. All we know is the stars are strange there."
The Lord of the Rings World Keeps Growing
It looks like the Rings of Power showrunners may have a while to explore Tolkien's geography, as they revealed that they're already starting to plan out five whole seasons. McKay explained, "There is a long-term plan with tent pole moments along the way and a very specific and clear endpoint," adding, "And that goes not just for sort of big narrative plot lore things, but also for character arcs."
These plans are beginning to get underway as Season 2 has already begun filming right outside of London, England. The show's executive producer Lindsey Weber has high hopes for these new episodes, too, explaining that Season 2 is "going to be grittier, more intense, maybe a little scarier."
McKay seconded this sentiment, ensuring fans that it would be "bigger and better" on "every level... by an order of magnitude."
Many fans are likely already waiting with bated breath for the second season of The Rings of Power, as the show skyrocketed in its approval ratings during its last couple of episodes. The show currently holds an 85% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with 375 of the 441 counted reviews being positive ones. It's certainly come a long way since its first couple episodes, when Amazon had to halt reviews for 72 hours to ensure they weren't intentionally review-bombing.
Season 1 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is available to stream in its entirety on Amazon Prime Video.
Source: The Official The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Podcast