The box office performance of The Lord of the Rings: The Battle of Rohan is questionable and the future of the IP series is unclear

Warner Bros. is currently exploring the potential of the "Lord of the Rings" series again, trying to capitalize on the popularity of this fantasy world and its characters. So far, Peter Jackson's two trilogies have been huge successes, but "The Battle of Rohan" has been a bit of a misstep.

The animated film has been released first in 30 different markets overseas, but its release results may indicate worrying prospects for Warner Bros.' future projects involving "Lord of the Rings."

The animated film grossed just $2 million internationally, with Spain being the most popular region, where it earned $350,000, a number far below Warner Bros.' expectations given that it was based on the box office success of the popular Lord of the Rings franchise.

Warner Bros. is hoping that the numbers will grow in the coming weeks as the film opens in the U.S. this week. The film will be released in 43 new markets this week, including the UK and the U.S., two markets that are crucial to the film's overall success.

In addition to its poor box office performance, the animated film also received tepid reviews. Audiences who saw the film did not show much interest in its content, which is another bad sign for the film and its potential box office performance, as word of mouth often affects people's interest in such projects. It also raises concerns about the future development of the series and whether people are still interested in the characters and the world of Middle-earth itself.

One potential impact these results could have on the "Lord of the Rings" franchise is that it could discourage Warner Bros. from pursuing other stories, especially ones as unique and creative as "The Battle of Rohan." The industry is reluctant to take risks, even with established franchises like this one, because success isn't always guaranteed once a film is released.

The franchise will likely continue to see stories adapted for the screen, thanks in large part to the success of Amazon's The Lord of the Rings: The Power of the Rings series. However, it remains to be seen whether Warner Bros. is willing to take risks on such niche stories, or tell them through animation, as they are likely to choose the safer approach to ensure that these Lord of the Rings spin-offs are well-received enough to support the production of more films.

One of the big questions people will have when this movie comes out is whether the Lord of the Rings franchise still has enough people interested to want more beyond the core story. The Search for Gollum is already in the works and will be the next installment in this fantasy world. However, it helps that it stars a classic character that people are familiar with and likely to be interested in - Gollum. It also helps that this particular story is set in a timeline that is closer to the time period of the Lord of the Rings story, as audiences are more familiar with that story.

Rohan is also an animated film, which means it's aimed at a slightly different audience than the live-action movies in the series. Not everyone is interested in animated films, regardless of the content, and that seems to be the case with this film. It can put off a certain audience, and given that it's not on the same level as the other Lord of the Rings stories, it doesn't do justice to the popularity of the series. The film is set 183 years before the events of the iconic Lord of the Rings trilogy, and when people think of Middle-earth, they think mainly of the core Lord of the Rings story. It's doubtful that people would be interested in something that far back, as everyone is always more focused on that core timeline.

The failure of The Battle of Rohan at the box office is likely to worry Warner Bros., as any misstep is seen as a negative. However, it is unlikely to cause a huge shock and hinder their attempts to fully tap the potential of the series. The Lord of the Rings series still has a lot of untapped potential with its many established characters and vast fantasy world, and as long as the story is well told and attractive, the fantasy genre is always something that audiences are willing to explore in depth.