This announcement comes 20 years after the release of Peter Jackson’s trilogy and in the middle of the franchise run at Warner Bros. Discovery.
Cinema returns to Middle-earth, with Warner Bros and New Line getting deals to make more adaptations of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.
On Thursday, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced on an earnings call that a deal to make “multiple” films based on JRR Tolkien’s books has been approved. The films will be produced by the production company of Warner Bros. New Line Cinema, which produced director Peter Jackson’s trilogy between 2001 and 2003. These films have earned nearly $3 billion worldwide, and the third installment, Return of the King, and – won 11 Oscars including Best. Pictured at the Oscars. The Swedish gaming company Embracer Group currently owns the rights to Tolkien’s World, where the rights to the Lord of the Rings films, games, merchandise, theme parks, and event production have been acquired after it bought the rights to Middle-earth Enterprises in 2022.
“Following our recent acquisition of Middle-earth Enterprises, we are excited to embark on this new journey in partnership with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, bringing the world unmistakably JRR Tolkien on the big screen in an exciting new way.” Lee Guinchard, CEO of Embracer Freemode. “We understand how important these projects are and together with our partners at New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, we plan to honor the past, look to the future and follow the principles. the highest quality and production standards.”
The deal is described as a multi-year deal that will mean that Warner Bros can develop feature films based on Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit books.
Zaslav, who oversees significant cuts at Warner Bros. Discovery, as part of a major restructuring, has previously talked about the need for more franchises on the big screen during earnings calls. New Line and Warner Bros Animation are currently working on The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim, an action movie set 183 years before the events of The Lord of the Rings. The film, which is set in the home of Helm Hammerhand, the legendary ruler of the Kingdom of Rohan, is set to hit theaters in April 2024.
