Breaking news: it appears that we’re going to get a new The Lord of the Rings film one of these days. Or possibly even a TV series? All thanks to Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema. Oh, and Embracer Group too, since they now hold the rights to the franchise.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Big Companies
The Hollywood Reporter has just come out with the news that Warner Bros. Discovery and New Line Cinema have signed a “multi-year deal” with Embracer Group AB to develop “features” based on both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, both by J. R. R. Tolkien. As the rights holders to the franchise since they bought it from The Saul Zaentz Company back in August 2022, Embracer Group does indeed have the right to do that. But the big question is: what kind of features do Warner Bros. and New Line want to make with their leased rights now?
Unfortunately, neither Warner Bros. nor New Line have made that clear in this The Hollywood Reporter report. The only detail we have comes from a statement by Warner Bros. film bosses Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy. You can read their full statement below:
Twenty years ago, New Line took an unprecedented leap of faith to realize the incredible stories, characters and world of The Lord of the Rings on the big screen. The result was a landmark series of films that have been embraced by generations of fans. But for all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by J.R.R. Tolkien remains largely unexplored on film. The opportunity to invite fans deeper into the cinematic world of Middle-earth is an honor, and we are excited to partner with Middle-earth Enterprises and Embracer on this adventure.
New The Lord of the Rings Media: Speculation
So apparently, Warner Bros. doesn’t want to do the same thing as what Peter Jackson with his The Lord of the Rings trilogy, or even his The Hobbit trilogy. They want to do their own thing with the franchise. From the sounds of it, they probably want to dig deeper into the the lore of the novels, and possibly even into The Silmarillion stories detailing the myths of the J. R. R. Tolkien’s universe. All this is speculation though until we hear anything official from Warner Bros. or New Line Cinema. Take it with a grain of salt (and some lembas bread if you have some) until then.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
