The Lord of the Rings' legacy continues. Aside from the much-awaited release of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Warner Bros. announced two new movies based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic fantasy novels, including The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. This will see Andy Serkis return as the titular character, Gollum, and a director. But aside from Sméagol, fans wonder if the original trilogy’s characters will also return, which Serkis himself addresses.
In an interview with Deadline, Serkis was asked if he would be working with his Lord of the Rings co-stars again in The Hunt for Gollum. However, as the movie is still in its very early stages, the actor can’t reveal who among the heroes of Middle-earth will return.
“That’s a difficult question to answer right at this moment in time because we’re really in the nascent stages of what it is exactly where we’re doing and where the story’s going to take us,” he said.
Hence, Serkis can’t drop names yet, as everything is raw, and the script itself is in its early development. They’re still discussing and sharing ideas on how Gollum’s journey will begin after his death in the 2003 Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King after falling into the fires of Mount Doom.
“We are just literally having very early state script discussions and ideas of exactly where and how we’re going to drop anchor with the character and his journey and how he is or comes into contact with other characters, and the characters that we know and don’t know,” the Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker actor explained.
So, Serkis doesn’t want to commit as everything is still “up for grabs.” Alternatively, The Hunt for Gollum producer Peter Jackson, who also directed the original trilogy, added that it’s too early to reveal which characters will cross paths with Gollum.
“But suffice to say, we will take our lead from Professor Tolkien,” he teased.
What is The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum about?
Details about The Hunt for Gollum remain under wrap, but Warner Bros. Discover CEO David Zaslav revealed (via Variety) that it would “explore storylines yet to be told.” Though Gollum played a major role in The Lord of the Rings and the destruction of the One Ring, Philippa Boyens, who worked with Jackson in the trilogy and would serve as the movie’s producer, claimed his story is one of the most compelling to them.
He’s one of the characters whose story they have yet to explore deeply despite him being a major player in the franchise. She continued by saying that Gollum lived in an interesting Middle-earth period. So, now that they finally get the chance to delve deeper into his lore, they may tell a lot about Gollum’s journey on Middle-earth this time.
Serkis added that they will be “investigating on a deeper level” who Gollum really is. He also confirmed that the movie would be canon, though they will take a fresh, new, and different approach.
There are several theories about who may appear in The Hunt for Gollum. A 2009 fan-made short with the same title featured Aragorn on a quest to find Gollum after being sent by the wizard Gandalf the Grey. Hence, many believe that these two may appear in the movie. The Hunt for Gollum is set to release in 2026.
