Cost is in the neighborhood of ONE Billion Dollars US.
Main unit wrapped shooting in April 2021;
J.A. Bayona’s (a Spanish film director.) episodes are a standalone entry point to the series [like a feature film];
There are more incredible directors and big stars yet to be announced;
LOTR & Wheel of Time are sharing crew & directors;
They are aiming for a mid-2022 release;
Three lore experts / Tolkien scholars were on set for a time during production;
Tolkien Estate is said to be very happy with how things are progressing;
*CONFIRMED* for the 1st time EVER: elements & passages from “The Silmarillion” and “Unfinished Tales” are licensed by Amazon Studios for this adaptation [we broadly speculate those are sections of the book relative to Númenor and Rings of Power including full rights to stories licensed in the Appendices of “The Lord of the Rings,” which already mention Númenor and much more. Actors had posted instagram pics from Silmarillion over the last 18 months;
Sauron/Annatar will not be revealed in Season One
More here:
https://www.theonering.net/torwp/category/amazon-tv-series/
LOTR is not. We have seen Peter Jackson's movies. So what's the point?