The Embracer Group has announced that they have acquired Middle-earth Enterprises, and now hold the rights to “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy and “The Hobbit.” This includes:
“Key upcoming works set in Middle-earth, in which Middle-earth Enterprises has financial interests, include the much-heralded Amazon series The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power which will premiere on September 2, 2022, set thousands of years before The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings; the animated movie The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (Warner Bros), set for release in 2024, and the mobile game The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-earth (Electronic Arts).”
Now, before you start gathering swords, shields, and axes, this doesn’t mean that Embracer is going to cancel already announced projects. But what it does mean is that they are allowed to make even more projects based on this world and these characters, as they themselves explain:
“Opportunities include exploring additional movies based on iconic characters such as Gandalf, Aragorn, Gollum, Galadriel, Eowyn and other characters from the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien, and continue to provide new opportunities for fans to explore this fictive world through merchandising and other experiences.”
Embracer has quickly built a name for themselves as a hungry acquirer of studios and companies, not unlike Sauron handing out fancy magic rings only to them ruling over them all. The Swedish company already owns video game companies Gearbox and THQ Nordic, and earlier this year they purchased several studios and properties from Square Enix, including several of its studios, and properties like “Deus Ex,” “Tomb Raider,” and “Thief.” Outside of games, the conglomerate also purchased Dark Horse Comics, the publisher of “Hellboy” and “The Umbrella Academy.”
