Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum cast reveal confirms 4 major returning stars

The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum cast has been revealed at CinemaCon 2026! After months of waiting to see just who will star in the first Lord of the Rings film since The Hobbit movies, we finally know who will be in the cast.

During its presentation at CinemaCon on Tuesday, April 14, in Las Vegas, Warner Bros. revealed Ian McKellen and Elijiah Wood return as Gandalf and Frodo Baggins, alongside director Andy Serkis, who will also reprise his role as Gollum, according to a report from The Hollywood Reporter,

It's obviously great to see the trio back for the new movie, which premieres in theaters on Dec. 17, 2027. There was a lot of talk about those three returning, so I think it was probably expected for most fans of The Lord of the Rings. The other big news revolves around who is joining The Hunt for Gollum alongside McKellen, Wood, and Serkis.

Lee Pace, who played Thranduil in The Hobbit movies, is also reprising that role for The Hunt for Gollum. That brings the official tally of returnees to four. There's a chance we could see more than that, as well.

Jamie Dornan will star as Strider/Aragorn, taking over the role played by Viggo Mortensen in the first three movies.

In addition, Leo Woodall will play Halvard, an ally, potentially, of Aragorn's in the movie. THR describes him as "another of the Dúnedain, who is joining Strider on the dangerous hunt." Kate Winslet has also been confirmed to play Marigol.

Needless to say, it's been worth the wait to find out just who will be in this cast!

For those who don't know, The Hunt for Gollum takes place before the events of The Fellowship of the Ring. In this story, we'll follow the journeys of several parties to find Gollum and stop him from falling into the wrong hands.

Jamie Dornan and Leo Woodall are such interesting choices in The Hunt for Gollum

Obviously, we knew Mortensen wouldn't be returning as Aragorn, as much as we all would have liked to see it. There were so many actors linked to the role, and one name that kept popping up was Leo Woodall. We know that was for a different role, but I didn't really think Dornan was much of an option to play Aragorn.

It's going to be really interesting to see how those two performers bring those roles to life. They are going to be so important to this story, especially Aragorn, who is so beloved in The Lord of the Rings movies. Mortensen's performance will not be easy to follow up, especially considering just how present those movies have stayed since they were released in theaters more than 25 years ago.

I'm confident in what Dornan can bring to the table, though. He's an incredibly talented performer, and he can brood. At this point in the story, Aragorn needs to brood a little bit, of course. He changes a lot from the time we meet him in The Fellowship of the Ring to when we leave him in The Return of the King.

We'll share more updates about The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum! Stay tuned.

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