LOTR series to be most expensive show ever

The "Lord of The Rings" TV show will be the most expensive series in the history of small screen, with the costs expected to exceed USD 1 billion.

Before the Amazon series, which was confirmed last November and has already been given a multi-season order, "The Crown" by Netflix held the numero uno position at USD 100 million.

The "LOTR" fantasy series was originally penned by JRR Tolkien, with Peter Jackson having helmed the popular film franchise.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, a USD 250 million rights deal was won by the Tolkien estate, HarperCollins and New Line Cinema against Netflix.

The contract also demands that the series must undergo production within two years.

The proposed show will follow the events before the first volume, "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring."

Hinting at Jackson's probable involvement with the series, Peter Nelson, the director's lawyer, has said that he had "recently helped start a dialogue" between him and Amazon.

"We are in an era where streamers are bidding up the price of programming. I think Amazon is taking a page out of the studios' emphasis on franchises.

"They also are realising that with the overproduction of television, you need to get the eyeballs to the screen, and you can do that with franchise titles," Nelson said.

Amazon was "very much a creature of the times", he added.

A spokesman for Jackson's company Wingnut Films Productions said there was "no news to share on this topic".