New “Lord of the Rings” Movie in Development

 ​A new “Lord of the Rings” movie has been announced! Hip-hip hooray! Right? Normally, yes, but with what is planned, I don’t see this going well. 

​On March 25, Tolkien Reading Day, or the day that Frodo destroyed the One Ring, Warner Bros. announced that there will be a new “Lord of the Rings” movie that will begin production after “Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum” is released. The official synopsis for the movie reads: “Fourteen years after the passing of Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin set out to retrace the first steps of their adventure. Meanwhile, Sam’s daughter, Elanor, has discovered a long-buried secret and is determined to uncover why the War of the Ring was very nearly lost before it even began.”

​This plot feels messy right away. It feels unnecessary, thrown together, and not compelling whatsoever, Sure, there are events that take place after the One Ring is destroyed, but nothing truly of consequence, or to make more of a story than is already in the appendages of “Return of the King.” 

​On top of this announcement being a complete surprise, another surprise is who is writing the movie. Late night host Stephen Colbert and his son are co writing the script. There’s no doubt Colbert has a talent in entertainment, but Colbert has one writing credit to his name when it comes to a feature length film. He co wrote “Strangers with Candy” which released in 2005, and it has a 51% critic rating and 55% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Needless to say, Colbert doesn’t have the strongest resume. 

​However, Colbert is the definition of a super fan when it comes to “Lord of the Rings.” So much so that he has been able to name the exact page that certain events happen on his late-night show. For that, I’ll give him credit. I’m sure he has stories in his head that he wants to adapt or tell, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be good or worthwhile. Whose to say that he won’t write a good movie? But whose to say that he’ll uphold the legacy of the original author?

​The “Lord of the Rings” franchise has been held up to a standard that not many other franchises have held to. It all started with “The Hobbit” in 1937, and it continued with the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy of books in the 50s. The books were acclaimed for their storytelling and J.R.R Tolkien’s unique way of writing. After Tolkien’s death, his son Christopher Tolkien continued his legacy by posthumously publishing numerous books including “The Silmarillion,” and “The Book of Unfinished Tales.” Then in the early 2000s, Warner Bros. released the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy into theaters. In three years, it accumulated 17 Oscar wins, with 11 in 2004 when “Return of the King” swept at the award show. “Return of the King” is still tied with “Ben-Hur” and “Titanic” for most Oscar wins ever. 

​However, since 2003, the series has been going through a bit of a rough patch. In the early 2010s, Warner Bros. released “The Hobbit” trilogy, which came nowhere near the critical or fan acclaim as the movies 10 years prior. Next up Amazon released the first season of “The Rings of Power” in 2022 which had some critical success, but not as much fan love, and finally in 2023, Warner Bros. released “Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim,” which again, came with less than desirable critic reviews, but solid fan reviews. 

​Unfortunately, Warner Bros. will do everything to keep the exclusive film rights to “Lord of the Rings” which means a new movie every few years regardless of quality or box office success. This newest movie, written by Stephen Colbert, is most likely just another way to keep those rights. 

​Warner Bros. is essentially left with three options. The first being to keep going the direction they’re going by releasing more sequels and unwanted stories. The second is to make stores that are relevant to “Middle Earth” and make them about the first and second ages, or the last thing is that they can let the “Lord of the Rings” story end.

Hollywood needs to learn that some things are okay being left alone. Not everything needs a sequel or prequel, or a cinematic universe like the MCU. “Lord of the Rings” is one of those things. Unfortunately, I do have a confession. Whether or not I think this new movie should be made or not, or whether I think it’ll be good or not (I have very little hope), I’ll be seated opening night with popcorn in hand ready to experience “Lord of the Rings” in theaters yet again.