Andy Serkis has officially begun shooting his Lord of the Rings prequel, The Hunt For Gollum, with Warner Bros confirming that production is now underway in New Zealand through a specially released announcement video.
What The Video Actually Shows
The clip doesn't reveal a lot in terms of hard footage, but it does exactly what any self-respecting Lord of the Rings fan wants: it shows Andy Serkis climbing into his motion-capture suit once again to transform into Gollum, a sight fans have jokingly compared to one of the wonders of the world, right up there with King Kong himself. The short video also features a sweeping aerial shot of the New Zealand landscapes standing in for Middle-earth, along with familiar strains of Howard Shore's original trilogy score, more than enough to set the tone for what's coming.
Serkis Wears Two Hats On This One
Serkis isn't just returning as Gollum this time around, he is also directing the film, putting him in charge of both the performance everyone associates him with and the overall vision for the project. The Hunt For Gollum marks the actor-director's most ambitious Middle-earth undertaking yet, and this announcement video effectively confirms that he is now, quite literally, in the director's chair and ready for filming to begin.
A Stacked Ensemble Cast
The film's cast list is one of its biggest draws. Elijah Wood returns as Frodo and Sir Ian McKellen reprises his role as Gandalf. Lee Pace plays the Elvenking Thranduil, while Jamie Dornan takes on the role of Aragorn, also known as Strider. Kate Winslet joins the cast as Marigol, reportedly Gollum, or Sméagol's, Stoor Hobbit grandmother. Anya Taylor-Joy plays a new Sindarin elf character named Seren, and Leo Woodall plays a Dúnedain man called Halvard, believed to be one of the Rangers of the North who accompanies Aragorn on his hunt for Gollum.
Where The Story Fits In The Timeline
The Hunt For Gollum is set between the events of The Hobbit and The Fellowship Of The Ring. Co-writer Philippa Boyens has described it as an adventure story that also carries a really strong psychological, interior story running alongside it. The plot follows Aragorn's mission to capture Gollum before he can reveal the location of the One Ring to Sauron, a hunt whose outcome longtime fans of the saga will already be familiar with, even if the road there is new territory on screen.
When The Film Arrives In Cinemas
The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum is scheduled to hit cinemas on 17 December, 2027, giving fans a fixed date to look forward to now that filming is officially underway in New Zealand.
