15 months after the announcement of a new series of Lord of the Rings films set in Peter Jackson’s iconic film universe, we finally have details regarding the first of hopefully many new films.
A New ‘Lord Of The Rings’ Film
In a surprise announcement from Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav during an earnings call and subsequent press release, it was revealed that the first film in a new batch of Lord of the Rings films is currently in the writing stage. Attached to the script are Academy Award-winning franchise writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens as well as The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim scribes Phoebe Gittins and Arty Papageorgiou.
Not only did we learn the members of the film’s writing team, but we also learnt a list of producers, a star and director as well as a title. The film will be titled Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum and will star Andy Serkis as he reprises his role as the eponymous Gollum, and in a first for the franchise… he will also direct the film.
The film will be produced by Peter Jackson who is said to be “very involved.” Joining him as producers are his wife Fran Walsh and collaborator Philippa Boyens. As for executive production, Serkis, Ken Kamins (District 9, The Hobbit) and Jonathan Cavendish (Next Goal Wins) of The Imaginarium Studios (which was co-founded by Serkis) will all join the production.
The Plot Of The Rings
Although the film’s plot is unknown, we can reasonably deduce an overarching plot for the film based on Tolkien’s works and context clues within the LOTR trilogy. In both the Fellowship of the Ring film and book, Gandalf frantically warns Frodo about the Ring following Bilbo’s 111th birthday party and leaves immediately.
Although there is no given timeframe in the film, Gandalf was absent for 17 years as he researched the Ring. As part of his research, he enlists Aragorn to help capture Gollum to learn more about the Ring and its history.
This could very well be the plot of the film, as it is the main instance of any hunt involving the deformed Stoor (proto-Hobbit) and was adapted under the title, The Hunt for Gollum, in a 2009 fan film. Less than 24 hours after the announcement, the fan film has been struck by Warner Bros for copyright which lends credence to the plot being one and the same.
Directed by Andy Serkis
Andy Serkis has directed major Hollywood productions before, most notably 2021’s Venom: Let There Be Carnage and 2018’s Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, and is no stranger to the Lord of the Rings franchise having starred in all three Peter Jackson films as well as Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. He was also the second unit director on all three Hobbit films.
His performance as Gollum paved the way for visual effects and the innovative technology from Wētā FX is seen on juggernaut CGI films such as Avatar and the Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy (which also stars Andy in a motion capture role).
Up Next On ‘Lord Of The Rings’
Next up for the franchise is the first animated adaptation of Tolkien’s work since 1980, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, which stars Brian Cox and Miranda Otto, the latter of which reprises her role as Éowyn. The film releases in theatres this December and is the seventh film in this continuity of the franchise.
Also upcoming is Prime Video’s second season of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, the most popular series on the platform. The season is scheduled to release all of its eight years at some point during 2024.
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