Yahoo Autos ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘The Hobbit’ Film and Gaming Rights Up for Sale (EXCLUSIVE)
Hollywood is about to stampede into Middle Earth. An array of movie, merchandising, gaming and live event rights to “Lord of the Rings,” “The Hobbit” and other titles from author J.R.R. Tolkien are coming up for auction now that the Saul Zaentz Co. has decided to sell its Tolkien holdings.
Zaentz Co. has hired ACF Investment Bank to handle the sale process, which is unfolding this week as bankers make the rounds of the logical Hollywood buyers. The Tolkien properties are projected to fetch at least $2 billion, based on recent high valuations for top-tier IP and content producers.
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Representatives for Zaentz Co. and ACF declined to comment.
The timing of the sale process is not accidental. Amazon is set to premiere its long-awaited, mega-budgeted TV series rendition of the enduring “Lord of the Rings” saga, “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” on Sept. 2. Amazon is at the top of the list of prime candidates to pursue the additional rights now held by Zaentz.
The Zaentz Co. holdings encompass rights to exploit “LOTR” and “The Hobbit” properties in film, video games, merchandising, live events and theme parks. It also includes limited matching rights should the Tolkien estate decide to make movies or other content based on two compilations of Tolkien writings that were published after his death in 1973: “The Silmarillion” and “The Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth.”
