Twenty years after Peter Jackson’s masterpiece trilogy was released, Warner Bros has announced a return of The Lord of The Rings to cinemas. The announcement was made during an earnings call to investors. Warner Bros revealed that “multiple” films based on the JRR Tolkien books have been confirmed at the company. The deal has been decided between Warner Bros Discovery and Embracer Group which currently owns the majority of the series’ rights to Tolkien’s world.
Like the previous films, the upcoming projects will be developed through Warner Bros and its production company New Line Cinema. The production company helped bring the original trilogy to life between 2001 and 2003. These three films raked in over $3 billion during their theatrical run. The last film in the trilogy, The Return of the King won 11 Oscars including Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
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Peter Jackson is set to return to the set for the new projects. He says in a statement that Warner Bros and Embracer have kept him in the loop every step of the way about the new films. He followed up by saying he is looking forward to speaking with the companies further to hear their vision for the franchise moving forward.
We don’t know how much Embracer spent acquiring all the rights for The Lord of the Rings last year. The deal’s cost has never been made public. However, the company currently owns the rights to most aspects of the series including films, games, merchandise, theme parks, tv shows and movies. Embrace purchased Middle-earth Enterprises in late 2022 clearly with the intention to revive the series across the board.
Lee Guinchard, the chief executive of Embracer Freemode said:
“Following our recent acquisition of Middle-earth Enterprises, we’re thrilled to embark on this new collaborative journey with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros Pictures, bringing the incomparable world of JRR Tolkien back to the big screen in new and exciting ways. We understand how cherished these works are and working together with our partners at New Line Cinema and Warner Bros Pictures, we plan to honor the past, look to the future, and adhere to the strongest level of quality and production values.”
Warner Bros has assigned two heads to the film division to oversee the multi-year deal. Both Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy will be responsible for developing feature films based on both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.
Luca says that the new films won’t necessarily revisit the original content Jackson covered in the first two trilogies. The aim is to explore the deeper facets of the lore in the series.
“For all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by JRR Tolkien remains largely unexplored.”
Source: Variety
