A major reunion is officially happening in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. The upcoming film is directed by Andy Serkis, who will also reprise his iconic titular character. It was previously confirmed that Ian McKellen is also returning to play Gandalf.
Now, McKellen shares that he will be reuniting with Frodo Baggins in the movie. He also confirmed that the project, which is scheduled for a December 17, 2027 theatrical release, will begin filming in May. Check out McKellen’s comments below:
It’s going to start filming in May. It’s going to be directed by Gollum, and it’s all about Gollum.
But I’ll tell you two secrets about the casting. There’s a character in the movie called Frodo and another character called Gandalf, and apart from that, my lips are sealed.
McKellen does not say whether Elijah Wood will be the one to play Frodo, but it seems highly likely since Gollum and Gandalf are being played by the same actors who portrayed them in the previous The Lord of the Rings movies.
Wood’s potential Lord of the Rings return was addressed by the actor in 2024, where he revealed that he would be open to the possibility. He stated that “It would be pretty incredible. I have to say, any return to New Zealand to work with those individuals within the context of that world would be…jumping back into a world that’s so beloved and means so much to me. So yeah, it would be awesome.”
The Hunt for Gollum’s story makes a Gandalf and Frodo reunion possible because of when it is set in The Lord of the Rings timeline. It takes place after the 111th birthday of Bilbo Baggins (Ian Holm) in The Fellowship of the Ring, but before Frodo leaves the Shire and begins the long journey that will eventually take him to Mordor. At this point, Gandalf and Frodo have already been longtime friends.
Frodo may not have an extensive amount of screen time, though, as the plot will primarily focus on Gandalf and Aragorn’s (Viggo Mortensen) search for Gollum outside the Shire as they seek vital information about the One Ring. Given Aragorn’s central involvement in the story, there is a high likelihood that Mortensen will return to play his beloved character again.
The return of Frodo also opens the door for other hobbits to appear in scenes set in the Shire, including Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin), Pippin Took (Billy Boyd), and Merry Brandybuck (Dominic Monaghan). Wood, Astin, Boyd, and Monaghan have famously remained close and reunited on numerous occasions, and this could continue in the franchise’s next live-action movie.
While Serkis directs The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, Peter Jackson is still involved as a producer, just as he was for the franchise’s 2024 anime film The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Jackson’s writing partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens are involved in the writing and producing of the movie as well.
Release Date
December 17, 2027
Writers
Arty Papageorgiou, Phoebe Gittins, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, J.R.R. Tolkien