Andy Serkis directs Hunt for Gollum, and Stephen Colbert and his son Peter McGee are spearheading The Lord of the Rings: The Shadow of the Past. These movies will feature a story set in the lead-up to The Fellowship of the Ring and look at Gollum's past through flashbacks. Another story is set 14 years after Return of the King and follows Sam, Merry, and Pippin.
Peter Jackson 's Lord of the Rings franchise is about to switch things up. Of course, any adaptation based on the iconic world created by author J.R.
R. Tolkien will be fantasy, but different Middle-earth stories fall under a variety of subgenres. Jackson's massively successful Lord of the Rings trilogy established a specific tone for the on-screen franchise, and he kept this ball rolling with his The Hobbit movies. Now, as we head into two new Lord of the Rings projects, the subgenre typically associated with this franchise is about to change.
Jackson is stepping away from the director's chair for The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum and The Lord of the Rings: The Shadow of the Past, but he will remain a staple within the two creative teams. Hunt for Gollum will be directed by Andy Serkis, who will also star as his memorable Lord of the Rings character, Gollum. Shadow of the Past is being spearheaded by TV host Stephen Colbert and his son, Peter McGee.
Jackson will executive produce both projects, while franchise veterans Philippa Boyens and Fran Walsh continue their work in the writers' rooms. All of this means that these new Lord of the Rings movies should be creatively cohesive with the rest of Jackson's film franchise.
However, the content of the stories is what may surprise people. These Lord of the Rings projects won't be epic wartime fantasies full of large-scale battles. Instead, Hunt for Gollum and Shadow of the Past will have a more folksy feel.
The Hunt For Gollum & Shadow Of The Past Will Bring Jackson's Lord Of The Rings Into A New Genre Both The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum and The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past are set during a time of relative quiet in Middle-earth. The former takes place in the lead-up to The Fellowship of the Ring, when Gandalf tasks Aragorn with tracking Gollum and bringing him to Mirkwood for interrogation.
This is when Gandalf learns Gollum's full history with Sauron's One Ring, and Hunt for Gollum is expected to dive into the wretched creature's past through flashbacks. Shadow of the Past will be partially set 14 years after the events of Return of the King and will follow Sam, Merry, and Pippin as they recount the early days of their adventure with Frodo.
This will allow the film to retroactively cover chapters of Fellowship of the Ring that were cut from Jackson's film, in which the four traveling Hobbits face friends and foes in the Old Forest. Though there is bound to be excitement in both films, there will be a complete absence of war and battles, and, with a small exception, any traditional villains.
Hunt for Gollum and Shadow of the Past are more about establishing valuable context for the original Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit, so their goals are entirely different from those of past films in the franchise. The Lord Of The Rings' Next 2 Movies Are Closer To What The Hobbit Should Have Been It's interesting that these new Lord of the Rings movies will shift subgenres, since Jackson's The Hobbit trilogy went out of its way to maintain the feel of Fellowship of the Ring, Two Towers, and Return of the King.
Tolkien's first book, set in Middle-earth, is a much more quaint and whimsical adventure. It's far less heavy than The Lord of the Rings, and is aimed more at younger readers. Sure, there's a battle at the end, but the tone of the whole situation is nothing like what we saw at the Battle of Helm's Deep or Pelennor Field.
It seems that Jackson thought viewers wouldn't appreciate a new Lord of the Rings film that didn't align with the tone and subgenre of his original trilogy. So, The Hobbit was stretched across three films, and the intensity turned up several notches. The result wasn't great, and these movies weren't nearly as popular as The Lord of the Rings.
Perhaps this is why that quaint tone is being embraced by Hunt for Gollum and Shadow of the Past, but the fact that The Hobbit abandoned that tone could cause problems for the upcoming projects. The Lord Of The Rings Changing Genres Could Become A Problem The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum and The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past both have a lot of potential, and there's plenty of reason to be excited.
Those who have read the books can look forward to finally seeing some of these stories and moments on screen, while those unfamiliar with Tolkien's full works can learn valuable context regarding Frodo's adventure with the One Ring. However, since Jackson's The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogies leaned so far into the intensity of fantasy war, Hunt for Gollum and Shadow of the Past may not meet some people's expectations.
It doesn't help that our other most recent Lord of the Rings adaptation, Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, is also set during a time of devastating war. The TV series revolves around Sauron's rise to power in the Second Age of Middle-earth, and though the adaptation is controversial, the epic battles and dramatic conflicts are cohesive with Jackson's trilogy.
This will mean even more that a large portion of viewers will potentially head to theaters with the wrong impression of what Hunt for Gollum and Shadow of the Past are meant to be. Overall, Jackson might have had an easier time if he had adapted other wartime Lord of the Rings stories, but that's easier said than done.
Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema only have the adaptation rights for Tolkien's central trilogy and The Hobbit, so additional Middle-earth stories, such as The Silmarillion, are off-limits. This significantly limits what Jackson can cover. There's hope that Tolkien's estate will open some doors in the future, allowing more epic, large-scale fantasy battles to return to the screen. For now, however, be prepared for The Lord of the Rings franchise to go through a shift.
The Hunt for Gollum revisits Tolkien’s Middle-earth, focusing on Aragorn’s urgent effort to capture Gollum before he reveals the Ring’s location to Sauron. Derived largely from Tolkien’s additional notes, the story fills a narrative gap between The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring.
Powered by Expand Collapse Like Follow Followed The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past Writers Philippa Boyens, Stephen Colbert, Peter McGee More than a decade after Frodo’s passing, Sam, Merry, and Pippin return to the beginning of their shared adventure to reflect on the journey. Elanor, Sam’s daughter, discovers a concealed truth that leads her to examine a pivotal moment when the War of the Ring was on the brink of failure before it had fully unfolded. Powered by Expand Collapse
Peter Jackson Lord Of The Rings Franchise Subgenres War And Battles Folksy Feel Gollum Philippe Boyens Fran Walsh Hunt For Gollum Shadow Of The Past Creative Teams War In Middle-Earth Battle At The End Three Films Intensity Turned Up Several Notches Expanding Range Expanding The Scope
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Another New Lord of the Rings Project in Works but There's a CatchA new Lord of the Rings title, developed by Warhorse Studios, is officially in development. Here is everything to know about the same.
Read more »
Lord of the Rings & Tomb Raider IPs Get a New HomeThe intellectual property rights for The Lord of the Rings and Tomb Raider have shifted to a new company named Fellowship Entertainment.
Read more »
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 Release Date RevealedThe upcoming season will air new installments weekly, likely ending before the year is over. However, the release date for the movie has not been revealed yet.
Read more »
The Kingdom Come studio is officially making a Lord of the Rings RPGWe don't know much yet, but the Kingdom Come studio is making a Lord of the Rings RPG
Read more »