Amazon says its Lord of the Rings prequel series was watched by more than 25 million viewers around the world on its first day, a record debut for a Prime Video series.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power debuted this week. Photo: Amazon
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power - which was shot in New Zealand - premiered on Amazon's streaming service this week in more than 240 countries and territories.
The series takes place in J.R.R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth at a time known as the Second Age, a period 4000 years before the events in the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit novels and films.
Amazon plans to let the Rings of Power story unfold in 50 hours over five seasons.
The online retailer spent more than $US465 million ($NZ760m) producing the show's first season, making it among the most expensive TV series ever produced and the most ambitious since Amazon jumped into original programming in 2013.
Amazon decided to shift production on future series of the series to the United Kingdom.
Amazon Studios had spent an estimated $650 million while in New Zealand and had created 2000 jobs.
The series has received mostly positive reviews on the aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, with an 84 percent positive ranking from 230 critics.
- Reuters/RNZ