New Lord of the Rings movies in the works

[DarkKnight88]

Well this is actually a great idea.

Even the worst criticism for the Hobbit trilogy had nothing but praise for the Gollum riddle scene in the first film which I believe Serkis did second unit for.



While I wasn’t a fan of Venom 2, Serkis is still a solid director depending on the material. I did like Breathe. I haven’t seen his Jungle Book though.

 

[Drizzle]

What are the odds Aragorn shows up in this? I can't imagine them wanting to de-age Viggo.

Recasting Aragorn would be the more sensible move rather than relying on de-aging tech on a 65 year old Viggo, even if the technology has gotten better over the last decade.

Gandalf will likely play a part in this as well. It'd be an easier sell if McKellen came back since Gandalf the Grey is supposed to look old anyway but the question is at 84 years old and not having a very positive experience filming The Hobbit, would he even want to come back?

 

[Spider-Fan]

You're gonna have to sell me on this one by actually making it good. Sorry, but I have been soured on just making Character: An IP Story thanks to Star Wars and various other franchises. So as of now, I don't care lol

 

[green]

Peter Jackson making more 'LOTR' movies, Andy Serkis reprising Gollum

Peter Jackson will return to Middle-earth to produce two more 'Lord of the Rings' movies, including the Andy Serkis–directed 'Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum.'

ew.com

Peter Jackson will return to Middle-earth once again.


The director, who helmed the beloved Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films, is set to produce two more films alongside longtime franchise collaborators Dame Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, Warner Bros. announced on Thursday. The company also revealed a tentative title for one of the projects: Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum.


Andy Serkis, who played Sméagol/Gollum in both of Jackson’s trilogies, is attached to both direct and reprise his role as the riddle-loving creature in the upcoming movie, which features a screenplay by Walsh, Boyens, Phoebe Gittins, and Arty Papageorgiou. Serkis will executive-produce with his close collaborator, Jonathan Cavendish, and Ken Kamins.

Very curious as to what the second film is.

 

[SomeOldGuy]

Peter Jackson making more 'LOTR' movies, Andy Serkis reprising Gollum

Peter Jackson will return to Middle-earth to produce two more 'Lord of the Rings' movies, including the Andy Serkis–directed 'Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum.'

ew.com

Very curious as to what the second film is.

My bet would be on it involving Aragorn’s time as Thorongil in Gondor.

 

[Boom]

The Hunt for Gollum feels a little too late. If my assumption is correct and the movie is going to cover Gandalf and Aragorn searching for Gollum at the beginning of Fellowship of the Ring, then Ian McKellen and Viggo Mortensen are both too old to realistically play the 2001 versions of themselves. Unless we're looking at another 2.5 hour of digitally de-aged actors. But McKellen in particular is pushing 85, so just in terms of physicality alone is he going to be up for what I expect to be an intensive role? I dunno.

It's like I said last year when Zaslav first announced new Lord of the Rings movies. The best move would be to find other 3rd Age storylines that they could mine material from in the Appendices. The Angmar War is a perfect example.

With that said, I'm 100% certain the second movie is Young Aragorn.

 

[Spider-Fan]

I am of the mind that if you're going to do a Star Wars or LOTR expanded universe or whatever, then artistically it's best to pick eras we haven't seen. Yeah, you won't get the crowd pop of a Millennium Falcon and such will give you, but most of these prequel movies these studios do just feel like lazy cash ins. At least a new era would give the filmmakers a wider canvas without needing to shove in nostalgia reference crap every 2 seconds. So the notion of a movie about Gollum or Aragorn or whatever just doesn't do anything for me.

 

[Drizzle]

The Hunt for Gollum feels a little too late. If my assumption is correct and the movie is going to cover Gandalf and Aragorn searching for Gollum at the beginning of Fellowship of the Ring, then Ian McKellen and Viggo Mortensen are both too old to realistically play the 2001 versions of themselves. Unless we're looking at another 2.5 hour of digitally de-aged actors. But McKellen in particular is pushing 85, so just in terms of physicality alone is he going to be up for what I expect to be an intensive role? I dunno.

It's like I said last year when Zaslav first announced new Lord of the Rings movies. The best move would be to find other 3rd Age storylines that they could mine material from in the Appendices. The Angmar War is a perfect example.

With that said, I'm 100% certain the second movie is Young Aragorn.

I can see why they opted for live action but it would have made more sense to make this an animated film like War of the Rohirrim so they could have easily brought back Mortensen and McKellen to reprise their roles as neither of their voices have changed significantly over the past 20 years.

 

[Zantera]

This just screams of desperate cash grab sadly. The way they worded their announcement felt like they didn't even try to fake some excitement in the franchise itself, but rather it feels like "Hey here's a turkey we haven't squeezed completely dry yet".

 

[Deck Rickard]

Cosmo Jarvis for young Aragorn. Dude looks and sounds like a young Viggo IMO.

 

[DarkKnight88]

I understand a younger actor as Aragorn, especially this is presumably a couple years before Fellowship of the Ring.

But a different Gandalf other than McKellen would feel all sorts of wrong. If this was a different continuity than the others I could understand but it’s not. Especially with Serkis back as Gollum.

It’s not like he was doing his own stunts even in the original trilogy. As long as the voice is still there, there’s no reason he couldn’t do it again. Unless he just doesn’t want to.

We’ll see.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

Please, God, can one classic be left alone and not strip-mined for Content?

 

[Boom]

Couple of ideas off the cuff:

The War of the Last Alliance
-Could be a single film or multiple films.
-A more fleshed out adaptation of the Fellowship of the Ring prologue. Just saying, they could beat Amazon to the punch (assuming Rings of Power even lasts long enough to get there).

The Angmar War
-Could be a single film or multiple films.
-This war leads to the complete destruction of the North Kingdom of Arthedain. The line of High Kings is shattered, leading to the formation of the Dúnedain.

The Oath of Eorl
-Single film.
-The Éothéod (Northmen) come to the aid of Gondor in the Battle of the Field of Celebrant and are granted dominion over the province of Calenardhon - which later becomes the Kingdom of Rohan.

The Siege of Helm's Deep
-Single film.
-I think this is going to be covered in the animated War of the Rohirrim movie, but I'd kill for this in live-action too. Helm Hammerhand is a bonafide badass. Enjoy the read: Helm

 

[Comicbookguy339]

I am of the mind that if you're going to do a Star Wars or LOTR expanded universe or whatever, then artistically it's best to pick eras we haven't seen. Yeah, you won't get the crowd pop of a Millennium Falcon and such will give you, but most of these prequel movies these studios do just feel like lazy cash ins. At least a new era would give the filmmakers a wider canvas without needing to shove in nostalgia reference crap every 2 seconds. So the notion of a movie about Gollum or Aragorn or whatever just doesn't do anything for me.

The problem is that just like Amazon, Embracer/WB don't have access to things like The Silmarillion or Unfinished Tales.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

The problem is that just like Amazon, Embracer/WB don't have access to things like The Silmarillion or Unfinished Tales.

So funny. The only acceptable Middle-Earth films to make are all reliant on having access to those.

 

[Boom]

So funny. The only acceptable Middle-Earth films to make are all reliant on having access to those.

I'm holding out hope that someday The Estate ponies up the rights to Silmarillion. Sadly I won't live to see it hit the public domain.

With the proper creative team, The Silmarillion could easily be the next Game of Thrones. But if they wanted to stick with movies, there are at least five stories within the book that could be adapted

The Flight of the Noldor
The Quest for the Silmaril
The Children of Húrin
The Fall of Gondolin
The War of Wrath

 

[SwordOfMorning]

I'm holding out hope that someday The Estate ponies up the rights to Silmarillion. Sadly I won't live to see it hit the public domain.

With the proper creative team, The Silmarillion could easily be the next Game of Thrones. But if they wanted to stick with movies, there are at least five stories within the book that could be adapted

The Flight of the Noldor
The Quest for the Silmaril
The Children of Húrin
The Fall of Gondolin
The War of Wrath

I agree on the artistic potential of films based on them but I also... Like the idea of a lot of things just never being adapted? There's something to be said for something like The Silmarilion getting to stay a strange, esoteric, beautiful text.

 

[Boom]

I respect that. I myself am a greedy little **** however.

It all depends on the creative team though. In the wrong hands, a Silmarillion adaptation would kill me.

 

[Comicbookguy339]

I'm holding out hope that someday The Estate ponies up the rights to Silmarillion. Sadly I won't live to see it hit the public domain.

With the proper creative team, The Silmarillion could easily be the next Game of Thrones. But if they wanted to stick with movies, there are at least five stories within the book that could be adapted

The Flight of the Noldor
The Quest for the Silmaril
The Children of Húrin
The Fall of Gondolin
The War of Wrath

They'll give those rights to Amazon before they give them to Embracer. As I understand it, the Tolkien Estate has never gotten a cut of the WB movies because the rights were sold decades ago and there's some bad blood there.

I think WB is also in a bit of a pickle right now by including PJ and Co. Despite them deciding to produce these spin-offs, I think PJ, Walsh and Boyens have some lines they won't cross i.e. they won't look at the appendices and create a totally new version of the First Age that ignores The Silmarillion and other writings by Tolkien. But once PJ and co depart then I think WB will absolutely go for it.

 

[DarkKnight88]

Please, God, can one classic be left alone and not strip-mined for Content?

 

[Spider-Fan]

The problem is that just like Amazon, Embracer/WB don't have access to things like The Silmarillion or Unfinished Tales.

I would just invent stuff in that case. Just doing what's in essence Expanded Universe novels in live action so we can exploit the IP and nostalgia bait people just isn't interesting to me. It's just strip mining the IP for content cause they're desperate

 

[Comicbookguy339]

I would just invent stuff in that case. Just doing what's in essence Expanded Universe novels in live action so we can exploit the IP and nostalgia bait people just isn't interesting to me. It's just strip mining the IP for content cause they're desperate

That's even worse imo.

 

[Spider-Fan]

That's even worse imo.

I would much rather get something new than a movie that's just gonna be "OMG! I remember that character! Wow, CGI AI Gandalf!!!! I am in teeeeeeeaaaaaarrrrrrrzzzzz" and such. I can already picture these movies being this, and it makes me want to smash my head against a wall lol. Tired of every franchise being this now

 

[Comicbookguy339]

I would much rather get something new than a movie that's just gonna be "OMG! I remember that character! Wow, CGI AI Gandalf!!!! I am in teeeeeeeaaaaaarrrrrrrzzzzz" and such. I can already picture these movies being this, and it makes me want to smash my head against a wall lol. Tired of every franchise being this now

I absolutely agree on that, these spin-offs scream "desperate" but if they start making **** up whole cloth then just make a different high fantasy franchise. If you divorce Middle Earth from Tolkien's writing then it really isn't that unique (I know it's the OG but you don't need the LOTR IP to tell stories about a quasi-medieval world inhabited by elves, dwarves and orcs).

 

[SwordOfMorning]

I absolutely agree on that, these spin-offs scream "desperate" but if they start making **** up whole cloth then just make a different high fantasy franchise. If you divorce Middle Earth from Tolkien's writing then it really isn't that unique (I know it's the OG but you don't need the LOTR IP to tell stories about a quasi-medieval world inhabited by elves, dwarves and orcs).

Middle-Earth isn't even really that similar to its derivative high fantasy worlds once you factor the rest of the lore from Tolkien's other writings. It looks the same on the surface but it is something much more complex and strange beneath.