Andy Serkis Set To Direct THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM Movie for Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. has announced that the next live-action Lord of The Rings movie to be released in 2026 will by titled The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt For Gollum, and it will be directed by Andy Serkis, who will also star in the film.
The project is currently in early development with original The Lord of the Rings trilogy filmmaker Peter Jackson and his partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens producing.
The script is being written by Walsh and Boyens, along with Phoebe Gittins and Arty Papageorgiou, and will “explore storylines yet to be told.” This particular film will obviously focus on Gollum.
I assume this will be the story where Sauron's forces are unleashed to hunt down and capture Gollum for information on the One Ring. Gollum is tortured in Mordor's dungeons mercilessly, until, under duress, he told Sauron's servants that the Ring was held by “Baggins” in a place called the “Shire.”
Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy had brokered a deal to make “multiple” films based set in Middle Earth and they said in a statement: “For over two decades, moviegoers have embraced the ‘Lord of the Rings’ film trilogy because of the undeniable devotion Peter, Fran and Philippa have shown towards protecting the legacy of Tolkien’s works, and to ensure audiences could experience the incredible world he created in a way that honors his literary vision.
They added: “We are honored they have agreed to be our partners on these two new films. With Andy coming aboard to direct Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, we continue an important commitment to excellence that is a true hallmark of how we all want to venture ahead and further contribute to the Lord of the Rings cinematic history.”
Jackson, Walsh and Boyens shared: “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!
“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!”
Serkis said: “Yesssss, Precious. The time has come once more to venture into the unknown with my dear friends, the extraordinary and incomparable guardians of Middle Earth Peter, Fran and Philippa. With Mike and Pam, and the Warner Bros team on the quest as well, alongside WETA and our filmmaking family in New Zealand, it’s just all too delicious…”
While Serkis is great as Gollum, I’m not really impressed with his directing. The films he’s made, such as Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, aren’t really that good. Maybe Jackson will be able to help him and guide him as he directs this next Lord of the Rings movie.
The film will also be executive produced by Ken Kamins, with Serkis and The Imaginarium’s Jonathan Cavendish.
What do you think about Andy Serkis directing and starring in the next live-action Lord of the Rings movie?