Who are the hitherto unknown creators of the Rings of Power?

Two high school friends from northern Virginia. Inseparable like Sam and Frodo? John D. Payne and Patrick McKay do not refuse the comparison. The two accomplices are the creators of rings of power, the highly anticipated series from Amazon Prime Video broadcast on the night of September 2. Their names are not known to the general public. “We are outsiders. But Amazon absolutely listened to anyone who had an idea for The Lord of the Rings. The material fascinated us and what we proposed corresponded to the expectations and ambitions of the platformsummarizes John D. Payne to Vanity Fair .

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According to the magazine, the praises sung by a heavyweight in the sector would also have counted. It is JJ Abramsthe director of the last Star Wars. The American would have appreciated the quality of their work on the film Star Trek: Without Limitswhich he produced in 2016. The duo, who were not credited in the credits, were chosen to script the fourth installment carried by Chris Pine, which should be released in 2023.We’ve worked on so many projects with so many great people, that never got done, we’ve also worked on projects that got done but where we weren’t credited…“, explains Patrick McKay.

A freedom grab

For thirteen years now, the two friends have worked together in Hollywood. They participated in the writing, in 2017, of the blockbuster godzilla vs kong, edited by Terry Rossio. The same year, the duo carried out one of the script rewrites of Jungle Cruise, which stars Dwayne Johnson. They have been working lately on the return to the big screen of superhero Flash Gordon, played by Sam J. Jones in 1981. Currently in production by Netflix, A People’s History of the Vampire Uprising with Travis Knight will also be based on a screenplay written by them, now taken over by new feathers.

As to rings of powerPayne and McKay sign at least the first season of the series, flanked by three different directors: Juan Antonio Bayona (Jurassic World ), Wayne Yip (Doctor Who) and Charlotte Brandstrom (The Outsider). Peter Jackson, him, was not included in the project. Recreating Tolkien’s universe will not have been an easy task, they confide. “We felt like hobbits”ensures in Vanity Fair JD Payne. “We felt like two very small people in a very big world, who had just been entrusted with something that meant a lot…”, raises Patrick McKay. They had to take some liberties with Tolkien’s texts. The Rings of Power brings together elements of storytelling normally distinct from several centuries. “Perhaps some fans would have liked us to do a Middle-earth documentary, but instead we told a story that brings these adventures together”they defend themselves.