It’s about time! Lord of the Rings fans rejoice as Gollum film gets release date

In a Christmas gift to everyone, Warner Bros. has announced that Gollum will officially be returning in December 2027.

Andy Serkis’ The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum is in the works and will open in theatres on December 17th, 2027. Although, this release date isn’t exactly a surprise seeing as all six movies in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films opened in December ahead of the holidays. Each of the trilogies raked in a whopping $2.9 billion at the worldwide box office.

Warner Bros. first announced The Hunt for Gollum last summer back in 2024, with an original project release date of 2026. Serkis is directing the movie, and is back in the titular role, as he should be. Serkis first took up the role of Gollum back in 2002 in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and has been playing him ever since. It’s not Serkis’ first directing role either, having served as a director for Venom: Let There Be Carnage in 2021, and Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle in 2018. He is also set to direct the new Animal Farm film which is set to be released later this year.

The Gollum trilogy will be produced by original filmmaker Peter Jackson along with his partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens.

Boyens told Empire magazine that “The Hunt for Gollum” is “quite an intense story” that “falls after the birthday party of Bilbo and before the Mines of Moria. It’s a specific chunk of incredible untold story, told through the perspective of this incredible creature.”

Back in 2024, Jackson spoke to Deadline and said that there was so much more of Gollum’s backstory to explore, especially when his whereabouts were unknown.

Jackson said: "The Gollum/Sméagol character has always fascinated me because Gollum reflects the worst of human nature, whilst his Sméagol side is, arguably, quite sympathetic. I think he connects with readers and film audiences alike, because there’s a little bit of both of them in all of us.

We really want to explore his backstory and delve into those parts of his journey we didn’t have time to cover in the earlier films. It’s too soon to know who will cross his path, but suffice to say we will take our lead from Professor Tolkien."

There have been no further casting announcements beyond Serkis yet, however OG cast members including Orlando Bloom and Ian McKellen have all expressed interest in returning. Although, as the plot is still fairly under wraps, it’s hard to say if it makes sense for their characters to return. Surely a little McKellen cameo can be written in either way?

The last time fans could see new LOTR content was back in December 2024 with The Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim. The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum seems to be the first of what should be a series of films (likely another trilogy), so keep your fingers crossed for some more LOTR action soon…

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