Everything to know about ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum': Cast, release date, director
The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum (working title), the highly anticipated LOTR spin-off film from Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema, will hit theaters in December 2027. Yes, you read that right — moviegoers have to wait two-and-a-half years to see their favorite pale-skinned Middle-earth monster from J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world up on the big screen again. Read on for everything to know about the new movie, including information on the cast, release date, and director.
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As of this writing, only Andy Serkis has been announced as starring in the new film. And yes, he's reprising his role as Gollum, a creature who was obsessed with the One Ring (which he called "my precious"). The English actor rose to fame in the early aughts for his motion-caption work on the original Lord of the Rings movies. He won the Best Digital Acting Performance category at the Critics Choice Awards for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and shared in that organization's Best Acting Ensemble prize for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. But what about Gollum's frenemy, Gandalf? In June 2024, Ian McKellen stated he was open to playing his popular wizard again in future projects, and in October 2024, screenwriter-producer Philippa Boyens teased that The Hunt for Gollum film might include Gandalf in some form. Stay tuned.
Mark your calendars for Dec. 17, 2027, as that's the official theatrical release date for The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. Warners made the announcement in May 2025, more than two-and-a-half years out from the big day. All of the prior LOTR and The Hobbit live-action films directed by Peter Jackson opened around the same time: The Fellowship of the Ring on Dec. 19, 2001; The Two Towers on Dec. 18, 2002; The Return of the King on Dec. 17, 2003; An Unexpected Journey on Dec. 14, 2012; The Desolation of Smaug on Dec. 13, 2013; and The Battle of the Five Armies on Dec. 17, 2014. Clearly, Middle-earth comes alive in December.Andy Serkis is doing double-duty on the movie, as both the star and the director. It'll be the fifth feature film he's directed after Breathe (2017), Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), and Animal Farm (2025). The producers of The Hunt for Gollum will include Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens — who all worked on the original LOTR and The Hobbit trilogies — plus Zane Weiner. The screenwriters will be Walsh, Boyens, Phoebe Gittins, and Arty Papageorgiou.
Serkis has announced that filming will take place sometime in 2026. "We are right at the beginning of the writing process," he said in February 2025. "We will be prepping later this year. Prep takes a good chunk of time, six or seven months, and then we will be shooting next year. So, it backs into that December 2027 release date." It's been reported that Wellington, New Zealand, will serve as the production hub for the two upcoming Lord of the Rings films.
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When Middle-earth Enterprises was acquired by Embracer Group in 2022, a new deal was struck with New Line Cinema to make two new Lord of the Rings movies. The first is The Hunt for Gollum, and the second has not yet been made public. "We've begun to work, conceptually, on two different live-action films, the first being The Hunt For Gollum, the second one still to be confirmed," Boyens revealed in October 2024.
If you haven't seen a Lord of the Rings movie in a while (or ever), you probably need a refresher on Gollum's backstory. Basically, he used to be a Stoor Hobbit named Smeagol, but when he found the One Ring by a riverbed and put it on, it extended his life and transformed into a monster. He became obsessed with the One Ring and stalked all of its future owners, until he eventually acquired it again at Mount Doom in Mordor and died while falling into a volcano. Throughout the original movies, Gollum is seen talking to himself in his unique style of speech, and often calls the ring "my precious."
Don't be confused, this new film has nothing to do with the 2009 fan-made movie from British filmmaker Chris Bouchard. He created an unauthorized short film called The Hunt for Gollum for about $5,000, based on Tolkien's written works. It's currently free to watch on YouTube and has a whopping 14 million views. The plot: "Prompted by Gandalf, a ranger by the name of Strider sets out to search for the creature Gollum, who knows the location of the Ring."
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‘I felt my organs shut down': Stars of ‘KPop Demon Hunters' on getting love from BTS, contending for Oscars, and becoming a cultural sensation
KPop Demon Hunters is officially historic. The animated Netflix hit, which has been breaking records for the streaming service since its June 20 release, just notched a No. 1 entry on the Billboard Hot 100 for one of its several trending songs, "Golden." It marks the first time a K-pop girl group (albeit a fictional one, in this case) has topped the chart. The film itself, meanwhile, has become Netflix's biggest animated original feature ever and the second most-streamed English original movie of all time. A sing-along theatrical release is set for Aug. 23-24. KPop Demon Hunters' monumental success shows no signs of stopping, much to the delight and shock of the film's stars. More from Gold Derby 'We're in the club forever': First-time Emmy nominees celebrate their moment in the spotlight 'Landman' Season 2: Everything to know about Billy Bob Thornton series as teaser trailer, return date revealed Arden Cho, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo, who provide the speaking voices for the demon-hunting girl group Huntr/x, are still wrapping their heads around suddenly being part of a cultural juggernaut. On a busy press day, the actresses sat down with Gold Derby to talk about being noticed by BTS, awards possibilities, and what it's like to suddenly have fans of every age group. Gold Derby: Congratulations. This movie has been such a massive success and has managed to shock the industry, and now it's even an Oscar contender. What would it mean to the three of you to see get that kind of awards recognition? Arden Cho (voice of Rumi): I mean, it would be such an honor. We feel so lucky just to be here and to be receiving all this love. It's amazing to be part of a movie that makes everybody feel good. May Hong (voice of Mira): I only found out a couple of weeks ago that that was a possibility, and I don't really think I can wrap my mind around what that means. A.C.: It's still registering! Ji-Young Yoo (voice of Zoey): I think we long passed the point where I was able to understand any of what's been happening, so I think the fact that we went from making a movie that I think we all really loved and cared about to it developing into this phenomenon worldwide, to what is quickly becoming an Oscar and awards run. … I'm just along for the ride and I'll process it all after. So many K-pop idols have shown love to the movie and chimed in about the accuracies to their real life, and groups covered the songs at KCON this past weekend. What's been your reaction to BTS, Seventeen, and some of the biggest music acts in the world right now embracing this film? A.C.: That stamp of approval! We're like [pumps fist]. Yes, we did it! M.H.: When I see that they all have millions and millions of followers, I also can't wrap my mind around that they're so into what we have done. Obviously we didn't sing or dance personally, but still. Even with Lee Byung-hun [Squid Game's big bad Front Man who voices Gwi-ma, the king of demons], it's like, so that person knows I exist? A.C.: I think we're just so thankful because all of these idols and artists who are loving the movie have really helped us get here, right? I mean, it is thanks to the fans and the viewers and, in a sense, our colleagues, people in the industry. Again, all of us cared about this so much, but especially our writers and directors and producers really worked hard to make this such an accurate and beautiful depiction of Korean culture and music and fashion and all of it. … I'm so grateful. J.Y.: I think it's something that was a concern amongst all of us when we were making the film. We wanted to make sure we got Korea right, that we got the culture right. All of us were like, 'Will they approve? Will they accept it?' So to see them not just accept it but embrace it, and support it, and give us so much love, is just the biggest sigh of relief. The warmth that spread through our bodies when all of this started happening was really just wonderful, and as an ARMY [short for "Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth," BTS' fandom name] for 10 years, going on 11 now, there's no words. I felt my organs shut down [when BTS mentioned the film]. A.C.: All of our phones were blowing up. Everyone was like, 'Did you see it?' JY.: Everyone kept asking me what I thought and there's no thoughts. I thought I might faint. Did you have a moment while recording your lines where you realized the incredible potential this film had to be huge? A.C.: I think for me, it was when I saw the animations really develop and saw the moment where the Saja Boys are introduced, and the girls are being girls and they're like, "Ugh, they're not even good." That whole scene was one of my first times seeing the girls and their reactions, and I was like, "Why are they so stinking cute?" And then the boys. … Like, the popcorn eyes? We were all feeling it in the room and Maggie [Kang, codirector] was like, "We're working so hard to make them so hot." We were seeing these little moments, and of course Maggie and Chris [Appelhans, codirector] saw the vision the whole way, and I'm so thankful that they had this world in their minds to create this. But I think for me, as the sessions went on, I was so, so excited and by the time I watched the screener I was running around like, "Guys, this is going to be incredible. This is going to be so big." We get to show the world Korea and our culture and our food, our music, our fashion, and we're so proud of it. I also love the Konglish [a colloquial mix of Korean and English] that we get to sneak into the movie and not really explain. J.Y.: I think all of us knew that we made something great, and we were all really proud of it and knew it would find an audience, but there's a difference between finding your audience and a success, and what's happening right now. I just don't think anyone was thinking, "Oh yeah, we're going to become the No. 1 most watched animated film on Netflix of all time." We're No. 4 for English language right now and we're still climbing. None of these are things that I think anyone, even the most industry veteran expert, could have foreseen. It's just very special. M.H.: I think my nearest and dearest called it first. I think my most loved ones, when they got to see it early, said, "This is going to be it." I was like, "I mean, I think it's amazing, so I hope so…" J.Y.: My litmus test is my dad. My dad tends to have a very honest take, so he'll always tell me if he thought a project I was in was boring. He'll say, "Oh, I kind of fell asleep in this part." He has rewatched this film almost daily, and he's a 55-year-old lawyer. He was not the target audience for this, so I think the fact that he was connecting to it so much and was so enthusiastic about it made me be like, "Oh, this has a crossover appeal. If we can get it right, it'll spread." And it has. AC: It's the emotional rollercoaster the movie takes you on. I don't think so many people expected to cry or feel all the feels. It's healing. That brings me to my next question, because in the movie there's an important quote: 'Our faults and fears must never be seen.' In the film's context it's technically about being hunters and idols, but obviously so many women and girls can relate to feeling that way. Have you received messages from fans of the film about what Rumi going against that sentiment in particular meant to them? AC: For me, that message hit so close to home, and I think as a woman in the industry, and as an Asian American and a Korean American, I feel like there's so many layers to that. Culturally we've talked about this a lot where I feel like the Asian culture is a lot about not talking about the things that might be embarrassing or shameful, or your struggles. We only want to show the good moments, the pretty moments, and I think there's this expectation to be so perfect. At least on myself growing up, I felt like, as an immigrant family, you're here, so you've got to be the best, be perfect, be great, and be better because of this opportunity, but that's a lot of pressure. Then again, as women, why can't we be goofy and make ugly faces and make funny sounds and not always be attractive? … I think it's been so healing seeing people really let down their guards and saying, "This is who I am." ... I feel like as actors we have an even greater pressure, and I'm sure as idols that pressure is something we can't even imagine. I think that's why we felt this responsibility because as K-pop lovers, and people who respect this industry too, we know that K-pop is a whole other thing. That world is a high bar. J.Y.: Sunlight is the best disinfectant. Beautiful! J.Y.: That's not mine. I took that from someone. [laughs] Your characters go through a wide range of emotions and I imagine that's not always easy to express through the voice. Were there any scenes that were particularly challenging to record? A.C.: It was so much fun, but the beginning was a little bit awkward because we're actors, and we're so used to playing together. … Oddly enough, the easiest thing was all the emotional stuff for Rumi because I feel like everything she was saying, whether it was to Celine or when she felt like Jinu betrayed her, I felt like all those moments. … It was almost weird where it felt like if you'd been with an actor, it would've almost been too vulnerable, but in a weird way I was like, "Oh, this is my first time doing this to no one," and it felt oddly healing and nice for me. M.H.: That's so interesting. I think that there definitely is an emotional intimacy that you're able to access when you're alone and without the influence of somebody playing with you. It's almost like being in your diary as you're reading lines, like you're referring back to something that really is personal to you rather than being there and playing a scene. A.C.: Yeah, and now I'm thinking about how in some of those big scenes Maggie and Chris would look away and give me privacy. I would come back and I was crying and I was like, 'Oh, thanks, guys.' It was also cool to see their response because they were like, 'I'm in this very intimate moment with you.' And then you see the world and the art. M.H.: But I didn't feel watched! A.C.: Yeah, that's great directing. They provided us a safe space to create together. Aw, that makes me sad. I want to go back! M.H.: Yeah, take us back! A.C.: C'mon, sequel! What's the experience of being part of this cultural juggernaut of a film taught you about yourself? A.C.: I think there's a lot of confirmation. I think that so much of my life I tried to be what people wanted me to be. I tried so hard to be this perfect version and obviously we're all so imperfect, so I think I was so unhappy for so much of my younger years fighting myself in a sense. I feel like in my 30s, I was just like, "I'm going to do my best to love who I am, my flaws and everything, and to just be," and I feel like this movie is that message. To know that that's what resonates with people, and that's what makes people connect… Then on top of that, I've been on this journey of seeking projects that make me really happy and proud to tell a story, whether it be something that has a touch of Korean culture or a little Asian American identity without being so in your face about a specific message. ... It just shows that we shouldn't be scared to tell stories that haven't been told before. I really hope this movie is just the beginning of so many more incredible stories for people like us. J.Y.: I think artistically I've long held an opinion that has been certainly confirmed by this movie. During the campaign for Parasite, and I'm sorry because I'm definitely going to butcher this quote, director Bong [Joon Ho] had a really great quote where he said, "If you can get over the barrier of one-inch subtitles there's a whole world of international cinema waiting for you." I've always felt that good art comes from anywhere, and art that is specific and nuanced and complex is universal regardless of where you come from. I think this movie is absolute proof of that. I think lots of people maybe have preconceived perceptions of what KPop Demon Hunters is, and ultimately it is a great piece of art, and it's really wonderful to see that opinion get confirmed on such a global scale. I'm very excited to see more artists stay true to who they are and make some great films. On a sillier note, which Western celebrities do you think would make good demon hunters? All: Ooh! This is hard! J.Y.: The clips of Destiny's Child reuniting, I mean … demon hunters right there! The lockstep? Yeah. Yes. This is not for the demon hunters, but I feel like Pedro Pascal would be an excellent Bobby. He's such a champion to everyone who knows him, and he's the nicest. I think he has a Bobby heart. A.C.: I thought of Olivia Rodrigo, and I don't know why, but I just thought of Anne Hathaway. J.Y.: She's a singer! She could totally do it. Meryl Streep could do it. She could do anything. A.C.: Lady Gaga! J.Y.: Oh my god, singing "Abracadabra" to seal the Honmoon. A.C.: Kelly Clarkson, I feel like, is always sealing the Honmoon. M.H.: I feel like I'm not thinking of really classic female characters, but Parker Posey? [laughs] Which is totally not what we're talking about, but I would enjoy seeing what that interpretation would be. J.Y.: Along the lines of The White Lotus, Jennifer Coolidge! I'm so with you on this. A.C.: Buffy the Vampire Slayer! Sabrina the Teenage Witch! I'm totally aging myself, but all of that good stuff. Lastly, has anyone come up to you and said they were a fan of the film where you were like, "What do you mean? You know who I am?" Who surprised you? A.C.: This has been happening a lot! I've been traveling a ton and I'm having 6-year-old kids running up to me and grabbing my hand and being like, "You're Rumi! You're the speaking voice of Rumi!" I'm like, "Wait, you're a 6-year-old boy. How do you know me?" And they're like, "I did my research." The mom is like, "Oh yeah, the boys have seen the movie like 17 times. They know everything. They Google you guys. They know your face." I'm like, "What? This is incredible." I feel like I'm really impressed by ages 5 to 7 or 8. So far, I feel like that's my most popular age right now. I've been invited to many 7th and 8th birthday parties. Unfortunately I've been too busy to go, but I feel like we really need to start making some appearances. I feel like the really young fans understand the story. Every once in a while I'm like, "What did you like about the movie?" and I love that one of the best responses I got was from a 7-year-old boy. He was like, "I loved the ending scene where they all come together and they learn that you have to be together. You can do it with each other." I'm like, "Yes, that is exactly what this movie is about." And then, you know, he's with his brother and they're dancing to "Golden" at the same time. … Also, all the 60-plus men and women that are just rocking out to the soundtrack. M.H: I like the converts the most. The dads who are like, "I don't even like K-pop or anything but I watched it six times." There's no target audience. A.C.: The target audience has been human. If you're human and you have a heart and any feeling, you are the target audience. KPop Demon Hunters is streaming now on Netflix. Catch a sing-along version of the film in theaters Aug. 23-24. 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Yahoo
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Everything to know about ‘Nobody Wants This' Season 2 as sneak-peek photos drop: ‘It will be an extension of last year but even more'
The love story continues. On Thursday, Netflix released the first images and new plot details for the second season of its breakout hit Nobody Wants This. The Emmy-nominated comedy which earned nods for Outstanding Comedy Series, Lead Comedy Actress (Kristen Bell) and Lead Comedy Actor (Adam Brody) returns on Oct. 23 with 10 episodes. Here's everything we know about the new season. More from Gold Derby Everything to know about 'Wednesday' Season 2 as [spoiler] is confirmed to return 'I felt my organs shut down': Stars of 'KPop Demon Hunters' on getting love from BTS, contending for Oscars, and becoming a cultural sensation The Plot Season 2 picks up where the show left off, diving deeper into the relationship between agnostic podcast host Joanne (Bell) and hot rabbi Noah (Brody), whose unlikely romance surprised even them. Now that love has bloomed, they need to see if they can make it last. The official Season 2 synopsis reads: 'First comes love, then comes life. The last time we saw agnostic podcast host Joanne (Bell) and unconventional (hot) rabbi Noah (Brody), their unmatched chemistry surprised everyone in their lives, including her sister Morgan (Justine Lupe), his brother Sasha (Timothy Simons) and sister-in-law Esther (Jackie Tohn), and even themselves. Their spark proved stronger than all of the obstacles trying to keep them apart. Now, they're back and fully committed to merging their lives — and loved ones — together. But their differences still exist and can't be ignored. The challenge now is not just falling in love against all odds, but staying together in spite of them.' New Guest Stars Leighton Meester, the Gossip Girl alum and Brody's real-life spouse, joins the cast as Abby, Joanne's former middle school nemesis who is now an Instagram mommy influencer. Show creator Erin Foster spoke to Gold Derby about landing Meester for the show. 'She is so funny. I know that I didn't discover her. She's already a big star, but she's so funny,' says Foster. 'I definitely wrote in some little Easter eggs for people with the interactions for Adam and Leighton.' Other guest stars this season include Miles Fowler, Alex Karpovsky, and Arian Moayed. Setting and Locations Just like Season 1, the new season continues to be a love letter to Los Angeles but this time, with a more intentional focus on the city's small businesses. 'Last year we did it sort of just organically wherever we were, but this year it was much more intentional that we found local businesses and really went out of our way to highlight them," says Foster. "I think that it'll be an extension of last year, but hopefully even more." Best of Gold Derby 'Australian Survivor vs. The World' premiere date and cast photos: 'King' George Mladenov, Cirie Fields, Parvati Shallow … 'Five new life forms from distant planets': Everything to know about 'Alien: Earth' as new trailer drops Everything to know about 'The Pitt' Season 2, including the departure of Tracy Ifeachor's Dr. Collins Click here to read the full article. Solve the daily Crossword
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2 days ago
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Movie review: 'Ninja Turtles' re-release showcases ideal adaptation
1 of 5 | The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Splinter return to theaters Friday. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures LOS ANGELES, Aug. 14 (UPI) -- The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have appeared on movie screens seven times in the franchise's history. The original 1990 live-action film, returning to theaters Friday, remains the most impressive. Inspired by the '80s comic books by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, TMNT included a popular weekday afternoon animated show and toy line by 1990, making a movie a foregone conclusion. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie became a phenomenon in the pre-summer movie season. The film, directed by Steve Barron, introduced anthropomorphic turtles Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello and Raphael in a realistic New York City. The brothers live in the sewers and fight crime in the shadows. The Foot Clan, led by Shredder (James Saito), recruits kids to commit theft on his behalf. The group kidnaps the Turtles' master, Splinter, leading the TMNT to team up with reporter April O'Neil (Judith Hoag) to rescue him. In 1990, the way to bring talking turtles to life was to make turtle suits actors could wear. The production went with the best in the business, the Jim Henson Creature Shop, which made the characters' animatronic heads with moving eyes and mouths. The most impressive aspect of 1990's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is the martial arts choreography. The four turtles perform martial arts choreographed by Pat Johnson, who worked on the Karate Kid films, and martial artists from Golden Harvest, the Hong Kong studio that co-produced it. Martial artists are already impressive, but performing moves comparable to Jackie Chan and Jet Li while wearing bulky turtle suits and heavy heads they probably couldn't see out of, was a miracle. The 2014 and 2016 CGI turtles may be more flexible, but technology can animate a turtle doing anything. Human beings performing martial arts in the confines of the time is amazing. Some of them also skateboard in those suits and manage not to fall off, at least not in the takes they used. The Henson puppets are more expressive than the animated turtles anyway, because they are subtle, albeit not very comfortable for the people wearing the costume. The way the turtles are brought to life means each character is a combination of performers. Josh Pais is the credited performer and voice of Raphael, while Michelin Sisti is the performer for Michelangelo, who is voiced by Robbie Rist. Donatello is performed by Leif Tilden and voiced by Corey Feldman. For Leonardo, David Forman performed the character while Brian Tochi provided the voice, but an array of stuntmen also took turns in the suits. Saito didn't speak as Shredder, either; David McCharen is credited as his voice. Raphael even goes out into the city wearing a trench coat and a hat, his turtle head and feet still showing. The joke is that New York is so used to weirdos that he blends in well enough. Splinter is fully animatronic, and his flashback as a baby rat practicing ninja moves is a highlight. Kevin Clash, who was performing Elmo on Sesame Street at the time, performed his voice. The Turtles movie came under some fire for depicting real violence for a family audience, including by the late Jim Henson himself, who allegedly did not appreciate the Turtles using nunchucks, swords, sais and a staff in one of the last projects before his death that May. It seems like the violence could have been previously addressed in the '80s, however. The four turtles are primarily distinguished by their weapon of choice, although they also wear different colored headbands. Ninja is 25% of the entire brand. Perhaps kids might imitate their heroes, and indeed the weapons were minimized in the 1991 sequel. For viewers just admiring the choreography, with no interest in engaging in real-life combat, the 1990 film really captures what fighting turtles would look like in the real world. This film also followed 1989's Batman, a breakthrough for portraying comic book worlds on screen. Batman went with a gothic, heightened look for Gotham City, but the intent was to show what characters like the Joker and Batman would look like in real life. So Turtles had humanoid amphibians, but April wears a real yellow raincoat and vigilante Casey Jones (Elias Koteas) has his street hockey gear. Shredder got a suit that reproduced his metal armor but with mostly a flexible material in which Saito could fight. The sewers, alleys and Foot Clan hideout contributed to Turtles' noir-ish aesthetic. Sequels would become brighter, though still fun and impressive with the turtle suits, but the first film allowed the Turtles to exist in a gritty world. Their human allies contributed to that too; Hoag portrayed April as a hard-nosed reporter, while Koteas was formidable. The film also introduced Danny Pennington (Michael Tunney), a bit of a Hollywood version of a troubled youth but a sincere vehicle for Splinter connecting with a kid being indoctrinated by a gang. Tunney only acted in three movies before moving into directing. It would be a young Sam Rockwell as Danny's senior Foot thug who would go on to a storied acting career. Raphael emerged as the main character of the film. He's the one who desires connection with the outside world, and who goes through the greatest arc by putting himself in harm's way and recovering. It's Raphael who rescues April and brings her back to the Turtles' sewer hideout, which leads the Foot Clan to Splinter. With guilt over that, Raphael is too anxious to find Shredder and makes himself vulnerable to an overpowering Foot Clan. Raphael also goes through sibling rivalry with his brothers, particularly Leonardo. Michelangelo and Donatello are comic relief, but four individual personalities come through, with Raphael becoming the film's heart. Out of five live-action movies and two animated ones, with new animated series still streaming, the 1990 Turtles benefits most from leaning into its martial arts roots. They pulled off believable turtles in late '80s New York, thanks to the commitment of performers and filmmakers. Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.
