Amazon is confident in the future of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, despite the show’s low completion rate. 

The fantasy series — thought to be the most expensive series ever made with a whopping price tag of $1 billion, per Time — brought in high viewership numbers with its premiere, but very few stayed to finish watching the series. 

According to The Hollywood Reporter, sources claimed that only 37% of subscribers watched the entire series. The numbers jumped to 45% overseas. Insiders revealed that a 50% completion rate would’ve been a good result, but not the best.

In addition, the show failed to garner attention from major award bodies, receiving two Critics’ Choice Super Awards nominations and one Screen Actors Guild Awards nomination, but winning none. 

Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke told THR that the streaming giant remains confident in the show’s future.

“This desire to paint the show as anything less than a success — it’s not reflective of any conversation I’m having internally,” she said, before noting that the second season is a “huge opportunity” for Amazon Studios and saying that “the first season required a lot of setting up.”

The show began production on the second season in early October in the UK after receiving an early renewal in 2019, nearly two years before the show premiered. Last year, Amazon Studios’ Head of Global TV, Vernon Sanders, shared that it is unlikely that the new season will premiere in 2023.

“It would be amazing if we could get Season 2 out within a year of Season 1’s release. It may take a smidge longer than that, but we’re doing everything we can, and we’re going to get better and faster as we go,” Sanders said.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is currently streaming on Prime Video.