'Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum' new LOTR movie for 2026

Warner Bros. Discovery announced this morning that they have given green light for two new live-action The Lord of the rings, with premiere planned for 2026. The new films will be based on the popular JRR Tolkien saga, and will be produced by Peter Jacksondirector of the acclaimed film trilogy Lord of the Rings y The Hobbit.

The first installment, which has the provisional title Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollumwill be directed and starring Andy Serkis (Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle). For the most clueless, we tell you that Serkis played Gollum using mo-cap in the films made by Jackson.

Serkis will direct the script written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Phoebe Gittins y Arty Papageorgiou. The writing team is in the early stages of script development.

Jackson, Walsh and Boyens will produce, with Ken Kamins, Serkis and Jonathan Cavendish serving as executive producers.

In a press release, Serkis said (via Deadline):

“Yes beautiful. The time has come once again to venture into the unknown with my dear friends, the extraordinary and incomparable guardians of Middle-earth, Peter, Fran and Philippa. With Mike and Pam, and the team at Warner Bros on the hunt as well, along with WETA and our film family in New Zealand, it's just delightful…”

Serkis, a master of motion capture (mo-cap), was honored by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) with an award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema. He teamed up with Jackson again in King Kong. In mo-cap he also played Caesar in the trilogy of Planet of the Apes. Her most recent film roles include The Batman, Luther: The Fallen Sunand the series Andor.

As a director, his most recent credits are the soon to be released Animal Farmsequel Venom: Let There Be Carnagey Mowgli.

Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, heads of WB Motion Pictures, said:

“For more than two decades, moviegoers have embraced The Lord of the Rings film trilogy because of the undeniable devotion that Peter, Fran and Philippa have shown towards protecting the legacy of Tolkien's works, and to ensuring that audiences can experience the incredible world he created in a way that honors his literary vision. We are honored that they have agreed to be our partners on these two new films. With the addition of Andy to direct The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum (*WT), we continue with an important commitment to excellence that is a true hallmark of how we all want to venture and contribute even more to the cinematic history of The Lord of the rings.”

Jackson, Walsh and Boyens added:

“It is an honor and a privilege to travel back to Middle-earth with our good friend and collaborator, Andy Serkis, who has unfinished business with that Stinker: Gollum! As lifelong fans of Professor Tolkien’s vast mythology, we are proud to be working with Mike De Luca, Pam Abdy and the entire team at Warner Bros. on another epic adventure!”

The trilogy of LOTRas well as the subsequent trilogy of The Hobbit also from Jackson, collected $6 billion dollars in the global box office.