It’ll soon be time to journey back to Middle Earth, as Lord of the Rings is getting another live-action movie series, with the first set to drop in 2026 — and it will center on the return of a beloved villain.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav initially announced the news during an earnings call, stating that Peter Jackson will be producing the project alongside his writing duo Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens.
Although the film was said to be in the early stages of development and without a title, this all changed when the studio dropped a press release later this morning.
The upcoming Lord of the Rings movie will focus on Andy Serkis’s Gollum, and the working title currently set as Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum.
The new #LordOfTheRings movie coming in 2026 will be titled, 'The Hunt For Gollum.'Andy Serkis will return to star and direct the film. pic.twitter.com/aRdgSUF3il
— Rotten Tomatoes (@RottenTomatoes) May 9, 2024
As well as Serkis’ return to the role, he’s set to direct. Meanwhile, Walsh, Boyens, and Jackson — who helmed the original film trilogy and the Hobbit flicks — “will be involved every step of the way.”
This confirms earlier reports stating that instead of rebooting the original LotR film trilogy, the new batch of movies will “explore storylines yet to be told” from J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy book series.
The producing trio said in a statement, “It is an honour and a privilege to travel back to Middle-earth with our good friend and collaborator, Andy Serkis, who has unfinished business with that Stinker — Gollum!”
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“As life long fans of Professor Tolkien’s vast mythology, we are proud to be working with Mike De Luca, Pam Abdy and the entire team at Warner Bros. on another epic adventure!”
It’s worth pointing out that the Amazon Prime Video series Rings of Power is not connected to Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movie world, despite some confusion.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jackson and Walsh were said to be “frustrated” that so many fans thought they were involved in the series. And since Amazon is planning on fleshing out its LotR TV world, it could very well be that their two separate visions will have to compete with one another.
Given the success of Jackson’s previous films, it’s no surprise that a new movie based on Gollum and set to arrive in 2026 has many fans excited.
“Let Serkis cook,” said one on X/Twitter, while another wrote, “This is sounding amazing.” A third added, “Now, that’s some interesting news.”
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