Former LORD OF THE RINGS Star Elijah Wood Hopes New Movies Stay True Tolkien’s Books
By Movieguide® Contributor
Actor Elijah Wood, who is best known for his role as Frodo in Peter Jackson’s adaptation of Tolkien’s LORD OF THE RINGS novels, recently offered his advice to studios as they pursue future projects based in the same world.
“I’m fascinated and I’m excited,” Wood told GQ magazine in a recent interview. “I hope it’s good. I’m surprised—I don’t know why I’m surprised because of course there would be more movies.”
“Obviously at the core of that, is a desire to make a lot of money,” he continued. “It’s not that a bunch of executives are like, ‘Let’s make really awesome art.’ And, again, not begrudging anybody because, of course, it is commerce. But great art can come from commerce. So those two things are not mutually exclusive.”
Both the LORD OF THE RINGS and THE HOBBIT were directed, written, and produced by Peter Jackson, who Warner Bros. has brought on to do the same for this upcoming project. To do so, Jackson is collaborating with Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, who were also involved in the previous trilogies.
The previous movies became massive box office successes and even won an Academy Award. Die hard fans of Tolkien’s book and LOTR universe appreciated how the movies reflected the same moral values as the books. Should studios want future projects to succeed, they should follow in the original trilogy’s footsteps.
“[The original movies] came out of a passion for these books and wanting to see them realized,” Wood added. “And I hope that that is ultimately what will drive everything forward with whatever these subsequent movies are. I just hope that it’s the same motivating factor at its core, whenever they hire a screenwriter and filmmaker—that it is with reverence for Tolkien’s material and enthusiasm to explore it.”
Adherence to the source material is of special interest to Christian audiences as the LORD OF THE RINGS novels were written with biblical and moral themes heavily incorporated. The previous Middle Earth movies that Jackson made reflected these themes and maintained their importance; these themes should continue to be highlighted in any portrayal of Tolkien’s works.
Little has been revealed about these films apart from the fact that multiple movies will be made based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s books. It is not yet clear if they will take place before or after the events of the LORD OF THE RINGS/THE HOBBIT.
Movieguide® has previously reported on the new LORD OF THE RINGS movies:
Warner Bros. recently announced they will be making new THE LORD OF THE RINGS movies, creating direct competition to Amazon’s series THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER.
Warner Bros. hopes to include Peter Jackson, Fran Welsh and Philippa Boyens, who wrote for the immensely popular THE LORD OF THE RINGS (2001-2003) trilogy, in the studio’s upcoming THE LORD OF THE RINGS movies.
While this increase in content is exciting for fans, it is unclear if Middle Earth is big enough to support two competing companies.
While Tolkien’s world is incredibly detailed, the bulk of the story centers around two well-worn tales—the story surrounding THE HOBBIT and the battle for the “one ring”—with little content extending beyond.
Warner Bros. will cover Middle Earth’s third age, exploring the stories of Gandalf, Aragorn and hobbits. However, since Jackson already told much of their stories in the original trilogy, it remains to be seen how Warner Bros. will create something new.
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