Peter Jackson has given fans a quick status report on everything happening in Middle-earth, and a surprise about his own next film. Speaking with fans at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain, as reported by Spanish outlet Fotogramas, Jackson said The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum is close to wrapping, The Shadow of the Past is in the writing stage, and the sequel to The Adventures of Tintin is next on his directing slate.
"We have The Shadow of the Past, which is in the scriptwriting stage. The Hunt for Gollum is almost finished filming. I think there are about two weeks of shooting left. And we've also already written the script for Tintin 2, the second Tintin film. That will be the next film I make," Jackson said (translated from Spanish).
The Hunt For Gollum Nears The Finish Line
The Hunt for Gollum is directed by Andy Serkis, who also returns as Gollum. Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens are producing, and the script comes from Walsh, Boyens, Phoebe Gittins, and Arty Papageorgiou. Filming started in Wellington, New Zealand, in July, so a wrap in the next couple of weeks would put the production at roughly four months of shooting.
The cast mixes familiar faces with new ones. Ian McKellen is back as Gandalf and Elijah Wood returns as Frodo, while Lee Pace reprises Thranduil. Jamie Dornan takes over as Strider, with Kate Winslet as Marigol, Leo Woodall as Halvard, and Anya Taylor-Joy as an elf. Warner Bros. has the film dated for December 17th, 2027.
The story fills in the gap Tolkien only hinted at in the books: Aragorn's long search for Gollum before the events of The Fellowship of the Ring, as Gandalf tries to learn what the creature knows about the One Ring.
The Shadow Of The Past And Tintin 2
The Shadow of the Past is the second new live-action Lord of the Rings film in development. It is set to adapt chapters from The Fellowship of the Ring that Jackson left out of his trilogy, including the stretch with Tom Bombadil and the Barrow-downs. Stephen Colbert, a lifelong Tolkien fan, is co-writing it with Philippa Boyens and Peter McGee. Jackson's comment confirms the script is still being worked on, with no production start announced.
The bigger news for Jackson himself is Tintin 2. The first film, The Adventures of Tintin, came out in 2011 with Steven Spielberg directing and Jackson producing, and the plan at the time was for Jackson to direct the follow-up. Fans have been waiting on that sequel for nearly 15 years. Jackson now says the script is done and it will be the next movie he directs.
Honored At Sitges
Jackson was in Sitges to receive the festival's Honorary Grand Prize, returning to the event 34 years after he presented his gory cult classic Braindead there. The festival marked the moment on social media.
During the fan session, Jackson also got candid about the filmmaking process. He said he does not enjoy shooting, and that the original Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit trilogy each took 288 days to film. Writing and editing are the parts he loves, even with the doubt that comes with them. He described the editing room as having "always a moment you're absolutely convinced you've made the worst film in history" (translated). He also credited Thunderbirds and King Kong as the things that made him want to make movies in the first place.
With Gollum about to wrap and Tintin lined up next, Jackson's schedule is filling up fast. Middle-earth fans will still see his fingerprints all over the new films as a producer and writer, even while he steps away to direct Tintin.
Which are you more excited to see, The Hunt for Gollum or Peter Jackson's Tintin 2?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.