UPDATE: It has now been revealed the new Lord of the Rings movie has a working title of Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, and will be directed by Andy Serkis Warner Bros.
has officially announced it is developing movies, with Peter Jackson overseeing them. Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens are set to write the screenplay, along with Phoebe Gittins and Arty Papageorgiou (Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim).
The news was announced during Warner Bros. Discovery’s first-quarter earnings conference call on Thursday, where CEO David Zaslav revealed the plans going forward, having previously noted the company was mulling over more films in the franchise. “Lord of the Rings is one of the most successful and revered franchises in history and presents a significant opportunity for our theatrical business,” said Zaslav in the call.
Jackson will be joined by longtime writing partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, who ”will all be involved every step of the way.” with a view to a 2026 release.
This will be no reboot or reimagining, but rather, it will ”explore storylines yet to be told” in Middle Earth. Knowing the drama that surrounded Amazon’s Rings of Power television series, having Middle Earth stalwarts Jackson, Walsh, and Boyens involved as producers is a canny move that will hopefully reassure fans about the potential quality of the new Lord of the Rings movies.