Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum has finally found its Aragorn

An image of Jamie Dornan alongside Viggo Mortensen in Lord of the Rings — (Image credit: BBC / New Line Cinema)

Jamie Dornan has officially been cast as Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, with Warner Bros. confirming the news at its CinemaCon presentation in Las Vegas.

The Northern Irish actor steps into one of cinema’s most iconic roles, with Viggo Mortensen not returning for the prequel. Dornan will play a younger version of the character, known then as Strider, in a story set before the events of The Fellowship of the Ring.

Andy Serkis is directing the film and will once again perform as Gollum, the role that made him a motion-capture pioneer. He’s joined by a mix of returning heavyweights and new additions as the studio looks to relaunch Tolkien’s big-screen universe.

Ian McKellen is back as Gandalf, while Elijah Wood reprises his role as Frodo Baggins. Lee Pace also returns as Thranduil, continuing his run from The Hobbit trilogy.

New faces include Kate Winslet, who will play a character called Marigol, and One Day star Leo Woodall as Halvard. Dornan’s casting had been rumoured, but this is the first official confirmation, and it firmly positions him as the new face of Aragorn on screen.

The film will focus on a relatively unexplored slice of Tolkien lore, following Gandalf and Aragorn as they hunt for Gollum in the years between Bilbo’s birthday and the beginning of Frodo’s journey. It’s a story only briefly touched on in The Fellowship of the Ring, now being expanded into a full feature.

It also marks the first live-action Lord of the Rings film since The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies landed in 2014, a long gap for one of cinema’s biggest fantasy franchises.

Warner Bros. has dated The Hunt for Gollum for the 17th of December 2027, setting up a heavyweight box office clash with Marvel’s Avengers: Secret Wars. Middle-earth vs the multiverse, not a bad way to spend a festive weekend.

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Morgan got his start in writing by talking about his passion for gaming. He worked for sites like VideoGamer and GGRecon, knocking out guides, writing news, and conducting interviews before a brief stint as RealSport101's Managing Editor. He then went on to freelance for Radio Times before joining Shortlist as a staff writer. Morgan is still passionate about gaming and keeping up with the latest trends, but he also loves exploring his other interests, including grimy bars, soppy films, and wavey garms. All of which will undoubtedly come up at some point over a pint.

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