The Rings of Power deserves to be seen in the cinema

That said, if there is one thing that has become evident from watching the first episodes and their critical reception, it is that they are beautifully crafted and have an extremely ambitious reach: exactly the kind of projects that should be seen on the largest possible screensuch as Peter Jackson’s trilogies dedicated to Lord of the Rings And The Hobbit. The Rings of Power and the most expensive series in the history of television, a project born thanks to the passion of Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, a big Tolkien fan. And, as Kathryn VanArendonk pointed out in her review for Vulturethe series is made to be seen in the cinema: “Investing so many resources in visual effects is certainly welcome – writes VanArendonk -, but it seems a bit of a waste for a series that many viewers will watch on hand-sized screens“.

Amazon appears to be aware of this aspect. The company organized a small series of events for the launch of the series in cities around the world, giving fans the opportunity to see the first two episodes in theaters. Understandably, the company has spent millions of dollars getting people to subscribe to Prime, not getting them to sit in theaters. However, a screening in cinemas could at the same time generating further interest in the series and potentially bringing more people to theaters.

Mine has every air of being, at best, a pipe dream. But since streaming services gave access to a myriad of movies and TV shows during lockdowns, we haven’t seen a course correction yet. Maybe give the audience a reason to go to the box office to see one of the biggest series of the year, if not there biggest ever, it would be the right thing. Alternatively, maybe someone could persuade Warner Bros. Discovery to bring it to theaters House of the Dragon.

This article originally appeared on Wired US.