The New York Times Chief Television Critic James Poniewozik opens his most recent newsletter with a quote from Arondir, an elf solder played by Ismael Cruz Córdova in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” The character says, “The past is with us all, whether we like it or not.”  

Poniewozik interpreted the quote to mean that Arondir is warning that society is compromised by resurging evil--but he added that the words might just as easily be talking about current TV trends. 

The Lord of the Rings, directed by Peter Jackson, was a highly successful movie franchise. Beginning in 2001, the films, based on the J.R. Tolkien classic trilogy, showcased a fantasy world created by the brilliance of the author. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is developed by showrunners J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay, part of the writing team,  for Amazon Prime. The series is set in the second stage of the fantasy middle Earth period Tolkien wrote about, thousands of years before the action in Lord of the Rings.

Screenwriters are embracing the idea of a 'prequel,' but many people have not heard the term. Most of us know what a sequel entails. There are been talks forever about bringing back the beloved Friends cast for a modern-day sequel to the original show, which garnered through-the-roof ratings. A sequel is simply a continuation of a previous storyline or a development of an original theme. 

But a prequel is a story with a timeline before the original one. A script could be the backstory on events you have already viewed. Hollywood writers know the market for this is hot. 

Other streamers have jumped on the prequel bandwagon. HBO's The Game of Thrones aired for eight seasons. Script developers came out with the House of the Dragon, which was a story about successions to the thrones 200 years before Thrones. Both shows are based on the novel A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin. Another classic example of prequel offerings is Obi-Wan Kenobi based on the Star Wars franchise. 

One of my favorites, The Sopranos, might be getting a spinoff prequel series on HBO Max based on the prequel film The Many Saints of Newark, released last September.  

What is the appeal of prequels when there are so many talented writers around with original ideas? According to Poniewozik, it's simple. There is comfort in familiarity, people like to know how things turn out for characters in our challenging and uncertain realities. What the critic termed  'prequel-mania' works for producers because they are more apt to fund a known commodity that has already been successful. Check out these prequel films.

There are a couple of prequels I would love to see written. One would be a prequel to the old series 'Leave it to Beaver.' And how about 'That Girl?' Those were enjoyable series reflecting gentler times, even though the characters had their struggles.