From Newsgroup: rec.arts.books.tolkien


Good grief! A movie developed by a talk show host ... this will be
complete and utter crap, even though it is based on actual Tolkien's
works. :-\


New 'Lord of the Rings' Movie From Stephen Colbert and His Son
in Development at Warner Bros.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Warner Bros. has revealed that Stephen Colbert and his son are
developing a brand new "Lord of the Rings" movie. The announcement
came Tuesday night via the studio's various social media accounts.

The video announcement opened with "Lord of the Rings" director
Peter Jackson giving a quick update about the next film in the
fantasy franchise: Andy Serkis' "The Hunt for Gollum." Jackson
said of the project, which is set for release in 2027, "Andy is
doing a terrific job. It's looking amazing. The script is coming
together really well and I think it's going to be a really good
film."

Jackson then teased his "very special partner," who will help
develop the next film after "The Hunt for Gollum," titled "The Lord
of the Rings: Shadows of the Past." That partner was none other
than "The Late Show Host" Colbert, who Jackson patched in through a
video call. Colbert, a vocal Tolkien fanatic, then explained that
the plot of his movie will come from chapters of "The Fellowship of
the Ring" that didn't make it into Jackson's 2001 adaptation.

"You know what the books mean to me, and what your films mean to
me," Colbert told Jackson. "But the thing I found myself reading
over and over again were the six chapters early on in ['The
Fellowship of the Ring'] that ya'll never developed into the first
movie back in the day. It's basically the chapter 'Three is
Company' [Chapter III] through 'Fog on the Barrow-Downs' [Chapter
VIII]. And I thought, 'Oh, wait, maybe that could be its own story
that could fit into the larger story. Could we make something that
was completely faithful to the books while also being completely
faithful to the movies that you guys had already made?'"

The late-night host said that after coming up with this idea, he
discussed it with his son, screenwriter Peter McGee, and worked out
a "framing device" for the film. After the groundwork was laid,
Colbert called Jackson, and over the last two years, they've worked
with screenwriter Philippa Boyens to develop a script.

The film's official logline 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 new "Lord of the Rings" project marks Colbert's first foray
into blockbuster development. However, it is not his first
collaboration with Jackson. Colbert had a small role in 2013's
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug." He also directed Jackson, as
well as "Lord of the Rings" stars Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen and
Elijah Wood, the 2019 short film "Darrylgorn," which is set in
JRR Tolkien's Middle-earth.

New Zealand-based screenwriter Boyens has a long history working
with Jackson. She helped pen his "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and
"Hobbit" films, along with Fran Walsh. She also co-wrote Jackson's
2005 monster epic "King Kong."

McGee's writing credits, spanning TV and film, include work on
"Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker," "Outer Banks," "The Righteous
Gemstones" and "Blue Bloods."

Tolkien penned "The Lord of the Rings" in the 1950s after the success
of his 1937 book, "The Hobbit." Jackson famously adapted the fantasy
saga into three films, released in 2001, 2002 and 2003. Widely
considered to be Jackson's most celebrated work, they earned
17 Oscars, with 11 of those going to the final chapter, "The Return
of the King." Jackson also adapted "The Hobbit," splitting the
comparatively slim novel into three parts. Those movies were released
in 2012, 2013 and 2014.



<https://variety.com/2026/film/news/lord-of-the-rings-movie-stephen-colbert-warner-bros-1236698684/>





--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: rec.arts.books.tolkien

Your Name <YourName@yourisp.com> writes:

Good grief! A movie developed by a talk show host ... this will be
complete and utter crap, even though it is based on actual Tolkien's
works. :-\

Y'know, I don't object to the talk-show host. I even _like_ the talk-show
host named. :) But yeah, the "movie franchise" doesn't really need to go
any further.

Quoting Mr. Colbert (who, for the record, I state once again I do hold in
some esteem): "Could we make something that was completely faithful to
the books while also being completely faithful to the movies that you guys
had already made?"

Uhm... forgive me, Stephen, but... no, not really, because the books and
the movies are already pretty incompatible. Did Gandalf have to visit
Saruman to give him a chance at redemption (book), or to find out what he
knew of the Enemy (movie)? Was Denethor someone who struck Pippin as being "not so much of Boromir as of Aragorn" (book), or a grumpy old bastard who drools over tomatoes as he orders men to their death (movie)? Was Gimli a well-regarded, equal member of the Fellowship who even captured the
respect of Galadriel (book), or a bungling, ignoble comic relief (movie)?

I don't think the book and the movies are fundamentally compatible. I wish
for all the world they could have been. But trying to cobble together even more movies for the "franchise" doesn't seem like it would serve Professor Tolkien's vision well. Not that Hollywood will listen to me here, but I
would politely advise that they leave well enough alone.

------------------------------------------------------------------- ohh@panix.com ...Ironic that _I_ of all people, the curator of
the Tolkien Sarcasm Page, should be the one to say
all this. :)
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2