Only 37% of Viewers Completed Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ Series: Report

Amazon’s highly anticipated fantasy series “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”, reportedly costed the streaming service an estimated $500 million for the first season. However, new reports indicate that the show may have struggled to gain traction among the viewer base, as it was estimated to have only a 37% completion rate domestically, 45% internationally, according to sources within The Hollywood Reporter.

This lack of connection between viewers and the show is further evidenced by streaming data from Nielsen released last year, which showed that 71% of those who viewed the series through the fourth episode in the US were over the age of 35. Amazon Studios Chief Jen Salke though insists that the show can be deemed a success.

Generally, Amazon Studios shows have been unable to keep up with competitors such as Netflix when it comes to viewership, deemed by Nielsen. Of the top 10 streaming original series in terms of minutes watched in the US, Netflix produced them all.

Data and analytics aside, Amazon Studios has had its fair share of successes with shows such as “Transparent”, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”, and “Fleabag,”. However, practitioners and those within the entertainment industry have found that the programming within Amazon Studios is often “confusing and frustrating place to do business”, with one showrunner anonymously stating that “there’s no vision for what an Amazon Prime show is”.

Amazon Studios is the subsidiary of Amazon, one of the largest internet companies in the world, operating a wide variety of businesses and services. The company is headed CEO, Jennifer Salke and projects a belief that entertainment should be accessible to everyone. However, the lack of connection and complete viewings of “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” might indicate that Amazon Studios needs to adjust its strategy for developing successful television shows.