From 2001-2003, Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy captured the hearts and imaginations of moviegoers around the globe. From 2012-2014, Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy captured fewer things. Now, Jackson’s being dragged back once again to Middle Earth. Sort of.
The Hunt for Gollum, a new batch of films centered around Andy Serkis’ skulking Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana situation, will hit the moviegoing public starting in 2026. Jackson and original Rings trilogy partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens “will be involved every step of the way” as producers.
However, Andy Serkis, Gollum himself, is set to direct.
The project was announced during a Warner Bros. Discovery earnings call by America’s favorite ’80s movie villain, David Zaslav, and will “explore storylines yet to be told.” The announcement is the latest in the streak of Zaslav’s creative innovations of just wanting it to be 2002 again.
As part of the same venture, a separate Middle Earth-related animated movie, “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim,” will be released on December 13, 2024, and is set 200 years before the events of “The Hobbit.”
All projects appear unrelated to Amazon Prime’s current Middle Earth series, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
So, how’s the internet taking this news? Mixed would be an understatement:
One user points out that the works of author J.R. Tolkien have plenty to mine for stories without making up new stuff out of thin air, saying, “Pointless movie, no one wants to watch a film based on Gollum when there’s an entire expansive universe of better stories to be told.”
Another user sees this whole announcement as an elaborate ruse:
The news was announced at the same time the hashtags #DontStreamOnMax and #FireDavidZazlav were trending on X, organized to coincide with WBD’s Q1 earnings call on Thursday. (Shares have dropped by 3.2%, just in case you’re curious.)
Anyway, it might be nice to see Gollum again? Maybe he’ll say that thing he says? “My highlyyyy valuuuueed”?
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