The release of a multimedia NFT experience based on one of the most beloved and popular intellectual properties of all time could be helpful in onboarding more people into the space and destigmatizing blockchain technology. And this might possibly be one of the major reasons for Warner Bros releasing ‘Lord of the Rings’ NFTs.

Rings are precious, but NFTs are even more so. As part of the Lord of the Rings series: Fellowship of the Ring NFT bundle released online, Warner Bros. Discovery becomes the first major studio to release film footage as a multimedia NFT. With the Web3 movie experience, the studio is bringing Middle Earth and the Shire to life through Content Blockchain pioneer Eluvio.

Notably, NFTs might give more freedom to fans as they can interact with and own their content differently. It might be possible for other big brands in the space to similarly follow or build upon the Lord of the Rings release, providing users with more immersive, dynamic experiences with the IPs they know and love rather than passive streaming experiences.

Based on the recent NFT release of the Lord of the Rings series, Real Research, an online survey app conducted a survey on Warner Bros Releasing ‘Lord of the Rings’ NFTs. The key findings from the survey data are as follows:

Highlights

  • 77.18% have watched the Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of Rings
  • 61.63% are aware of the Warner Bros- Discovery collab with web 3 company Eluvio
  • 51.44% are in anticipation of the 2002 Lord of the Rings series “The Two Towers” NFTs

The survey began by asking the respondents whether they have watched the Lord of the Rings movie “The Fellowship of Rings”. The results indicate that the movie is popular among the public, with almost 77.18% having already watched it. 16.42% answered that they plan to watch the movie in the future.

   Figure 1 Survey indicates majority have watched The Fellowship of The Rings
Figure 1: Survey indicates majority have watched The Fellowship of The Rings

Recently, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has partnered with Eluvio and released NFTs based on the 2001 Lord of the Rings movie “The Fellowship of Rings”. 61.63% of respondents said they were well aware of this, while 21.90% said they had heard of it.

Furthermore, the survey asked “what are you most excited about in the Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings NFT package?”, for which almost half of the respondents (48%) said the 4K copy of Peter Jackson’s debut 2001 lord of the rings film. Another 27.06% said they are excited about the 3 hours and 48 minutes extended version of the film and 9.24% chose the 8+ hours of bonus footage and commentary.

One in Two Want NFTs Based on Lord of Rings’ ‘The Two Towers’

Here, 51.44% reveal their preference to see The Two Towers’ NFT when asked which lord of the rings movie they want to see an NFT in. 28.96% selected Return of the King and 11.59% picked The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

According to the survey results, 41.42% of respondents are also familiar with other movie-turned NFTs such as Lionsgate’s NFTs for “Saw”. On the other hand, others are aware of Netflix’s NFT for Stranger Things (17.90% ).

  Figure 2 Respondents on which NFT
  Figure 2: Respondents on which NFT they want to see next

Likewise, upon Warner Bros releasing ‘Lord of the Rings’ NFTs, 46.16% believe that NFTs will evolve as the preferred way for film enthusiasts to feel a more intimate sense of ownership in the digital age.

NFTs Will Become Mainstream in Hollywood

Next when asked if  NFTs will become mainstream in Hollywood, 46.16% showed strong agreement to this, 23.35% somewhat agreed and 1.29% strongly disagreed.

 Figure 3 Respondents on whether NFTs will become mainstream in Hollywood
 Figure 3: Respondents on whether NFTs will become mainstream in Hollywood

Warner Bros EVP & General Manager, Jessica Schell mentioned after Warner Bros Releasing ‘Lord of the Rings NFTs that these non-fungible tokens have the potential to be the new way to handle movie direction.

Additionally, the survey asked whether this will be an effective way to distribute movies directly in the future. 53.95% responded saying it will be highly effective, 21% somewhat effective, and less than 1% (0.76%) said it will be highly ineffective.

Methodology

 
Survey TitleSurvey on Warner Bros Releasing ‘Lord of the Rings’ NFTs
DurationNovember 1 – November 8, 2022
Number of Participants20,000
DemographicsMales and females, aged 21 to 99
Participating Countries Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Benin, Bolivia,… Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, China (Hong Kong) China (Macao), China (Taiwan), Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Greanada, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Lithuania, Malaysia, Maldives, Maluritania, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar [Burma], Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zimbabwe.