Amazon has acquired the rights to produce a new multi-season television series based on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien.
The new adaptation will be based on events before both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, The Guardian reports.
Amazon head of scripted programming Sharon Tal Yguado said the franchise has captured imaginations and generations of fans.
"We are honoured to be working with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line on this exciting collaboration for television and are thrilled to be taking The Lord of the Rings fans on a new epic journey in Middle Earth," she said.
The Lord of the Rings movies, adapted by Sir Peter Jackson, won 17 academy awards, including Best Picture, and grossed billions of dollars worldwide.
Sean Astin, who played Samwise Gamgee in the trilogy, told Entertainment Weekly last week that he always suspected there would be more Lord of the Rings series or movies made.
"I've been saying for 15 years that maybe like 12 years after Lord of the Rings came out, that it would get remade," he said.
"And people always said, 'Oh no, it'll never get remade! It's a classic! They could never top it!' And I'm like, 'No, it'll get remade. It's a massive story! The characters are so beloved."
Asked whether he would consider reprising his role, Astin said he is already "carrying the Samwise banner for the Peter Jackson version".
"When I saw the Amazon thing, that didn't even occur to me. I just sort of thought, 'What would it be like to see the next Sam there?' I think it's an intriguing idea [but] the devil's in the details. How would they do it? How? Who?
"In a core way, Peter was making Peter's movie. So I don’t know. The challenge would be, could they find some team to do it that they could let to their thing, or are they going to squat on it? It's hard to make a TV series like this by committee."
The location of where the series will be shot or whether Sir Peter Jackson will be involved has not been disclosed.
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