It's important to note that this series "will explore new storylines preceding J.R.R. Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring," rather than re-tell the stories depicted onscreen in Peter Jackson's trilogy. The deal, which commits to multiple seasons for the show, also includes a possible spin-off series. Given the popularity of Lord of the Rings as a franchise (we'll just pretend that the endless The Hobbit movies don't exist), the rumors of Amazon prepping a free ad-supported video service couldn't come at a better time.