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Lifestyle
Lincoln Geraghty, Professor of Media Cultures, University of Portsmouth

Fan reviews and parodies of Amazon’s The Rings of Power show that ownership is not just determined by contracts

Amazon JRR Tolkien Peter Jackson

The fan reaction to season one of The Rings of Power in 2022 was, to put it mildly, very mixed. Following the 2017 announcement that Amazon had bought the rights to adapt some of J.R.R Tolkien’s lesser-known work, many fans were cautious in their celebration.

I research fandoms, so I am particularly drawn to the levels of critical analysis and humour fans employ in their review videos and parodies of The Rings of Power. They highlight that while multi-billion-dollar corporations may have the financial clout to own valuable IP and some of the biggest entertainment franchises, ownership is not just determined by contracts.

Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-2003) stands as testament to the director’s passion for Tolkien, Middle Earth and cinematic storytelling.

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