Elijah Wood is keeping mum on whether he’s making an appearance in the forthcoming instalment of The Lord of the Rings series.
The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum is directed by Andy Serkis and produced by Lord of the Rings trilogy director Peter Jackson. Serkis, who played Gollum in all three films of Peter Jackson’s original The Lord of the Rings trilogy as well as in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, will once again play the title character using motion capture technology.
Wood, who played Frodo in the original films, was at Fan Expo New Orleans where he was asked if he was reprising his role as the hobbit.
“I can neither confirm nor deny. Listen, a wizard is to be trusted,” Wood told ScreenRant, referring to co-star Ian McKellan’s spoiler from August last year.
McKellan, who played Gandalf in the film trilogy, teased, at the For the Love of Fantasy event in London, that The Hunt for Gollum would have “a character in the movie called Frodo and there’s a character in the movie called Gandalf”.
McKellan did not clarify whether he and Wood were reprising their roles or whether their characters would be played by other actors. Wood, as well as several other cast members from the original films, were on the panel alongside McKellen.
Wood didn’t clarify either, claiming he was “not really allowed to confirm”, but said he was “really excited”.
“I think it really is a creative ‘getting the band back together.’ A lot of the creative heads of department are back and in that space again. Philippa [Boyens] I think, is co-writing it and producing it. It’s very much that core original group getting back together to tell this story that will feel like a really fun exploration of this character that we all love so much,” he said.
“And I’m just really excited. I’m excited for Andy to direct it,” Wood continued. “It feels so unbelievably appropriate that he directs a film about his character that he has really made his own. I’m thrilled. It’ll be great. And I’m excited to see. I know their intention is to make other films in this universe. And that’s exciting, interesting to see where that goes, but very exciting.”
The Lord of the Rings trilogy was released between 2001 and 2003 and The Hobbit trilogy followed between 2012 and 2014.
The trilogies were massively successful, each raking in over $2.9bn worldwide at the box office.
In October last year, screenwriter Philippa Boyens told Empire The Hunt For Gollum was “quite an intense story, which falls after the birthday party of Bilbo and before the Mines Of Moria. It is a specific chunk of incredible untold story, told through the perspective of this incredible creature”.
When the new film was first announced, Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav said Jackson, alongside producing partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, “will be involved every step of the way”.
The Hunt for Gollum is expected to be released in December 2027.
How did The Lord of the Rings end up so beloved by the right wing?
Netflix is adding 25 films from beloved movie franchise this month
Leonardo DiCaprio shows off ‘real personality’ in viral Golden Globes clip
Golden Globes 2026 winners: Full list of every movie and TV show
Mark Ruffalo blasts Trump as the ‘worst human being’ in red carpet statement
One Battle After Another and Adolescence win big at 2026 Golden Globes
