It’s Official – Lego has gained the license to produce sets for The Hobbit and the Lord Of the Rings.
The deal will allow the toy/educational company to produce sets from the first three Lord Of the Rings films– The Fellowship Of the Ring, The Two Towers and Return Of the King, as well as the two upcoming Hobbit films.
Lego have set up a temporary Lord Of the Rings Lego website for the theme and we expect more news leading up to the first wave of sets in June.
We can’t wait to see minifigures of Gandalf, Legolas, Frodo, Bilbo, Sam, Arwen, Aragorn, Boromir, Gollum, Saruman, Treebeard and the rest of the enduring characters and scenarios created by JRR Tolkien.
Fans have been creating their own Lord Of the Rings custom characters and environments for some time but now they can make it official – One Brick To Rule Them All!
Official Press Release
Warner Bros. Consumer Products and The LEGO Group
Build on Partnership to Produce Construction Toys for
THE LORD OF THE RINGS™ Trilogy and the Two Films Based on THE HOBBIT
-Building Sets Based on Epic Film Trilogy and Forthcoming Theatrical Release Slated for 2012-
BILLUND, Denmark and Burbank, CA – December 16, 2011 – Warner Bros. Consumer Products and The LEGO Group announced today a partnership that awards the world’s leading construction toy brand exclusive rights to develop build-and-play construction sets based on THE LORD OF THE RINGS™ trilogy and the two films based on THE HOBBIT™. The multi-year licensing agreement grants access to the library of characters, settings, and stories for THE LORD OF THE RINGS property, as well as films The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again. LEGO® THE LORD OF THE RINGS construction sets are slated for a rolling global launch beginning in June 2012 in the United States, with LEGO THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY scheduled for later in the year.
“Only LEGO, with their expertise in the construction category, is capable of doing justice to the incredibly imaginative environments depicted in the world of THE LORD OF THE RINGS and the two films based on THE HOBBIT,” said Karen McTier, executive vice president, domestic licensing and worldwide marketing, Warner Bros. Consumer Products. “These films give life to amazing worlds and characters and we are thrilled to bring fans these products that deliver an imaginative play experience befitting of these beloved properties.”
The LEGO THE LORD OF THE RINGS collection will translate into LEGO form the epic locations, scenes and characters of Middle-earth as depicted in all three films, including The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
In late 2012, LEGO THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY will give fans of all ages a chance to build and play out the fantastical story and new characters of the legendary Middle-earth adventures depicted in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey from Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson, slated to premiere December 14, 2012.
“Our collaboration with Warner Bros. Consumer Products has delivered numerous worldwide successes in the construction toy aisle with lines like LEGO HARRY POTTER and LEGO BATMAN, introducing us to loyal audiences who love great stories, strong characters and the toys that they inspire,” said Jill Wilfert, vice president, licensing and entertainment for The LEGO Group. “It’s particularly exciting to now be able to create sets based on the fantasy worlds and characters from THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy and the two films based on THE HOBBIT, not only because we know they will foster collectability and creative play, but also because these are two properties that our fans have been asking us to create for years.”
Information about the sets and collectible minifigures from both collections will be unveiled at a later date at TheLordoftheRings.LEGO.com.
And the article from Variety Magazine.
Lego has found its next precious
“Warner Bros. Consumer Products has awarded the toymaker the rights to create action figures and playsets based on “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy and the two upcoming films based on “The Hobbit,” the first of which bows at the end of 2012.
The multiyear deal grants Lego access to the library of characters, settings and stories of “The Lord of the Rings,” “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” and “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” all helmed by Peter Jackson.
The first toys Lego plans to produce will hit store shelves in June, tied to “Lord of the Rings,” with new construction sets planned for the weeks leading up to the Dec. 14 bow of “An Unexpected Journey.”
“Only Lego, with their expertise in the construction category, is capable of doing justice to the incredibly imaginative environments depicted in the world of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and the two films based on ‘The Hobbit,'” said Karen McTier, executive VP, domestic licensing and worldwide marketing, Warner Bros. Consumer Products. “These films give life to amazing worlds and characters and we are thrilled to bring fans these products that deliver an imaginative play experience befitting of these beloved properties.”
Warner Bros. has a long history with Lego.
Lego has produced toys around the studio’s “Harry Potter” franchise, the Batman and “Speed Racer” pics and now the entire DC Comics library. Lego also has tied toys to Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Toy Story,” “Cars” and “Prince of Persia” pics, and has long had the “Star Wars” and “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” license.
Warner Bros.’ Lego-made DC toys are also expected to hit store shelves next year, the same time Lego will also release its Marvel line, tied to Sony’s “The Amazing Spider-Man” and Disney’s “The Avengers.”
“Our collaboration with Warner Bros. Consumer Products has delivered numerous worldwide successes in the construction toy aisle, introducing us to loyal audiences who love great stories, strong characters and the toys that they inspire,” said Jill Wilfert, VP, licensing and entertainment for the Lego Group. “It’s particularly exciting to now be able to create sets based on the fantasy worlds and characters from ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy and ‘The Hobbit,’ not only because we know they will foster collectability and creative play, but also because these are two properties that our fans have been asking us to create for years.”
Going after film franchises has paid off for Lego, with “Harry Potter” and “Star Wars” helping the toymaker top $1 billion in sales in the U.S. for the first time in 2010, a figure it’s confident to repeat again this year. Altogether, sales are up 106% for the fourth-largest toymaker since 2006, the company has said.
This year, shipments of Legos to stores between August and October are up more than 65%, according to Panjiva, a New York-based data firm.”
The first Lord Of the Rings Lego sets come out in June. Thanks to Brickset and The Brothers Brick for the news.