Lord of the Rings: Upcoming Movie Release Date & Details

Warner Bros. has revealed “The Hunt for Gollum,” a new Lord of the Rings movie in which Andy Serkis will play the legendary Gollum again and serve as director.

Release Date

The Hunt for Gollum will open in December 2027. The movie is part of the Lord of the Rings series.

Successful December Releases: The Lord of the Rings & The Hobbit Franchise

December also saw the release of all six of the previous Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films. These movies grossed a combined total of $2.9 billion worldwide. The franchise has found success with its December release schedule.

Director

Andy Serkis has directed other films before. His previous directing work includes Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle and Venom: Let There Be Carnage.

Peter Jackson Returns for New Lord of the Rings Project

The new project is directed by Peter Jackson, who helmed the first three Lord of the Rings films. He will collaborate with Philippa Boyens and Fran Walsh on the film.

The first live-action Lord of the Rings movie since 2014 will be this one. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies was the final one. The War of the Rohirrim, an animated movie, debuted in theaters in 2024.

What is The Hunt for Gollum Plot?

The Hunt for Gollum will expand on Tolkien’s work (a terrifying thought). It will take place primarily 17 years after Bilbo’s birthday, when he handed over the One Ring to Frodo. Although Peter Jackson’s films didn’t really show off the lengthy timeline before Frodo left for Rivendell, the events of the movie take place before our main hobbits even leave the Shire.

Basically, worried about the nefarious nature of Frodo’s “magic ring,” Gandalf is concerned that Gollum would be captured and subsequently reveal information about what he suspects is the One Ring to Sauron’s dark forces. In order to try and get to Gollum before Sauron, Gandalf reaches out to Aragorn and asks him to make use of his ranger skills to track the wretched creature down before it’s too late.