Elijah Wood Agrees With ‘Lord of the Rings’ Co-Star on Playing His Most Iconic Role as Long as He’s “Alive and Able”

It’s almost impossible to quantify the impact that The Lord of the Rings movies have had on the filmmaking industry over the last 25 years. Based on the famous literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien and written and directed by Peter Jackson, the movies became a cultural phenomenon that’s still relevant to this day. Even the franchise is still going strong in the form of a Prime Video original series, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, which is a prequel to Jackson’s films. Last year, Warner Bros. released a new LOTR animated movie, The War of the Rohirrim, which underwhelmed both in its reception and performance at the box office.

The Lord of the Rings fans still have a lot to look forward to, though, including a new film titled The Hunt for Gollum, which will be released in theaters on December 17, 2027. The Hunt for Gollum will take place between The Hobbit movies and The Fellowship of the Ring, and Ian McKellen recently let slip that both he and Elijah Wood will reprise their respective roles as Gandalf and Frodo in the film. McKellen has also said that he would not want anyone else to play Gandalf while he’s still alive and able.

Woody recently sat down for an interview, and he confirmed that he shares the same sentiment: “I totally get that. I certainly wouldn’t want anybody else to play Frodo either, as long as I’m alive and able. And I can also recognize what fun that is going to be — when you are in the cinema, and you see the hat turn around, and it’s Gandalf. Because I’m also a fan, and I’m excited to see how it all comes together.” While he won’t expressly admit that he’s returning as Frodo in The Hunt for Gollum, he does add that “there’s a feeling of getting the band back together.”

Who Is Writing and Directing ‘The Hunt for Gollum’?

Andy Serkis has been tapped to direct The Hunt for Gollum with a script from Philippa Boyens, Phoebe Gittins, Fran Walsh, and Arty Papageorgiou. Peter Jackson remains involved as a producer and is said to be supervising the story and direction. In addition to directing the film, Serkis will also reprise his role as Gollum, but it’s unclear if Viggo Mortensen will also be back as Aragorn.

Stay tuned to Collider for more updates and coverage of The Hunt for Gollum.