- Warner Bros has announced first of new series of Lord of the Rings films will be released in 2026
- Film will be called ‘The Hunt for Gollum’ and Andy Serkis is directing
- Peter Jackson, who directed the original trilogy is returning to work on new films as a producer
Precious news for fantasy fans – a new Lord of the Rings film is coming to theaters in 2026, Warner Bros have confirmed, and it will be called ‘The Hunt for Gollum’.
Andy Serkis will reprise his role as Gollum and will direct the movie too.
Not only this, but Peter Jackson, who directed the original Lord of the Rings trilogy, along with writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens are on board as producers and will be heavily involved, according to David Zaslav, Warner Bros Discovery CEO confirmed in an earnings call.
Zaslav added that the film is in the early stages of script development and will explore “storylines yet to be told,” according to Variety.
He added that: “Lord of the Rings’ is one of the most successful and revered franchises in history and presents a significant opportunity for theatrical business.”
The announcement is the first fruits of a deal established in 2023 by Warner Bros to make multiple films based on the classic books by JRR Tolkien.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most successful film series of all time. The three films in the series – The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002) and The Return of the King (2003) – grossed more than $2.9 billion at the global box office and won 17 Oscars, among many other awards. Stars of the films included Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom and Serkis.
Jackson later returned to make a trilogy of films based on Tolkien’s novel The Hobbit, which are a prequel to The Lord of the Rings.
