Jeff Bezos Says LOTR: The Rings Of Power Is A "Responsibility," Not All About Making Money

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has commented on The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, saying in a new interview that he hopes the show does J.R.R. Tolkien's work justice. It's not all about making money, he said.

"Middle-earth is such a beloved world, and telling the story of the forging of The Rings of Power is a privilege and a responsibility. I hope we do Tolkien's work justice," he told Time. "It goes beyond making a commercially successful show. Everyone working on the show read these stories as kids and our hearts are in it."

The Rings of Power is a very expensive TV series, considered by some estimates to be the costliest TV show ever made. Amazon reportedly paid $250 million for the rights alone, before $468 million in production costs for the first season, Time reported. In addition to these fees, Amazon aired a Rings of Power ad during this year's Super Bowl at a cost of about $13 million, the report said.

Bezos, who is said to be a big fan of the fantasy genre, was reportedly personally involved in Amazon's negotiations years ago to acquire the Lord of the Rings rights. Bezos stepped down as CEO of Amazon last year and is now the company's executive chairman of the board.

The eight-episode first season of The Rings of Power premieres September 1 on Prime Video with two episodes to kick things off. The remaining six will debut each Friday until Season 1 ends on October 14.

In other Lord of the Rings news, Grand Theft Auto company Take-Two recently announced that its Private Division unit is making a Lord of the Rings video game with Weta's gaming division.