Whether we like it or not, the entertainment industry is in an era of acquisitions. The Walt Disney Company bought 21st Century Fox, which will allow the X-Men to finally appear in an Avengers movie. Likewise, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund acquired EA Studios, which resulted in the closure of flagship studio BioWare and the cancellation of the long-awaited Mass Effect 5.
Paramount Skydance has recently completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, which put the fate of various projects in question, particularly The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past.
Early in October, it was reported that this adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's novels had hit an indefinite delay amidst Warner Bros. Discovery's merger. Rumors indicated that Paramount would wait and see how The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum would perform at the box office before greenlighting and producing other Lord of the Rings projects. But just as more questions and uncertainty started to arise, Peter Jackson set the record straight.
The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past's script is being written
Jackson was recently awarded the Honorary Grand Prize at the Sitges Film Festival to a long standing ovation. The celebration only continued as Jackson took the opportunity to shed some light on the status of upcoming projects set in the Lord of the Rings franchise:
"We have Shadow of the Past, which is in the scriptwriting stage. The Hunt for Gollum is almost finished filming. I think there are about two weeks of shooting left. And we've also already written the script for Tintin 2, the second Tintin film. That will be the next film I make."
While Jackson's comments didn't reveal a whole lot of new information, they do confirm that Shadow of the Past is still set to come our way (for the time being, at least). Unfortunately, we don't know when filming will start or who will be cast. On the bright side, we do have a tease of what the story will be about.
The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past is being written by Philippa Boyens, Peter McGee, and former The Late Show host Stephen Colbert, who is a massive LotR fan. The film will take place 14 years after Frodo Baggins' death and will follow Sam, Merry, and Pippin as they retrace the steps of their original adventure. Throughout their journey, Sam's daughter, Elanor, will discover "a long-buried secret" that ties into the War of the Ring.
Given that The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past is still being written, it's unlikely it will come our way anytime soon. Fortunately, there are still many other projects set in Middle-earth to look forward to. Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 will be released on Nov. 11, 2026, and it will follow the new ruler of Mordor, Sauron, as he prepares to forge the One Ring to rule them all. The upcoming batch of episodes will take place five years after the events of season 2.
Once the dust settles and the Ring is created, audiences have a date with Frodo Baggins, Gandalf, and Sméagol in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, which is scheduled to be released on Dec. 17, 2027. The upcoming film will feature multiple returning cast members, including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, and Andy Serkis, the latter of whom will also direct.
Many events are bound to unfold in the Shire over the upcoming years, and we can't wait to see how they all pan out. The first four episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 will be released on Nov. 11, 2026, on Prime Video.
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