Peter Jackson's beloved The Lord of the Rings movies have so far spanned the original trilogy as well The Hobbit trilogy. The Middle-earth franchise has continued to expand elsewhere through projects like The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power at Prime Video and The War of Rohirrim. But one of the most anticipated upcoming movies, produced by Peter Jackson himself, is The Hunt for Gollum.
First announced in May 2024 by Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema, The Hunt for Gollum will be directed by Andy Serkis, who'll also star as Gollum. There's been a lot of talk about getting the old team back together ahead of the upcoming flick. With the movie being set between the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, both Sir Ian McKellen (Gandalf) and Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) have showed interest in reprising their roles, dependant on the scripts. Most recently, John Rhys Davies, who played Gimli son of Glóin, weighed on on whether he would come back.
The good news? He's very much interested in the possibility of returning. However, he demands that the crew use more technical applications for his makeup. “If I don’t have to spend eight hours a day for three years of my life in a makeup chair, I might indeed do it,” he told ScreenRant. “If I’m asked to serve, I will consider it and probably say yes.”
Part of the reason Rhys-Davies declined the opportunity to reprise his role in The Hobbit movies was because he has some allergies to makeup, in addition to feeling like his character had closure. Gimli is mentioned in The Hobbit trilogy, but never appears.
I think his return would have to make sense for the plot. What we don't want is a fan service movie; something Serkis veered close to with one of his previous projects, Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Given that he's got Peter Jackson to help him, I'm hopeful.
The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt For Gollum is expected to begin filming later this year in New Zealand. Its release date is currently set for December 27, 2027. Should it be successful, there could be more films in this world.
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