‘Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum’ Sets December 2027 Release Date; Warner Bros. Also Dates New ‘Evil Dead’ and M. Night Shyamalan Movies for 2026

Gollum will officially return to the big screen for Christmas 2027. Warner Bros. has announced that Andy Serkis‘ “The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum” will open in theaters Dec. 17, 2027. The studio has also dated the next “Evil Dead” movie, starring Souheila Yacoub, for July 24, 2026, and M. Night Shyamalan’s “Remain” for Oct. 23, 2026. Jake Gyllenhaal, Phoebe Dynevor and Ashley Walters star in Shyamalan’s latest.

The release date for “The Hunt for Gollum” is hardly a surprise given all six movies in Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” film trilogies opened in December ahead of the Christmas holiday. Each trilogy powered to $2.9 billion at the worldwide box office.

Warner Bros. first announced “The Hunt for Gollum” last summer and said it would be ready for theaters in 2026. The film has been delayed a year. Serkis is directing the tentpole and once again starring in the title role, which he’s been playing via motion capture since 2002’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.” Serkis’ directorial efforts include “Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle” and “Venom: Let There Be Carnage.”

Original “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy filmmaker Peter Jackson and his partners Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens are producing the new movie. Warner Bros. stressed when announcing “Gollum” that the trio “will be involved every step of the way.”

Boyens told Empire magazine that “The Hunt for Gollum” is “quite an intense story” that “falls after the birthday party of Bilbo and before the Mines of Moria. It’s a specific chunk of incredible untold story, told through the perspective of this incredible creature.” Original “Rings” cast members like Ian McKellen (Gandalf), Orlando Bloom (Legolas) and Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) have all expressed interest in returning for the new film should the story make sense for their characters to appear, although no additional casting has been confirmed.

“The Lord of the Rings” franchise was last in theaters in December 2024 with the release of the anime movie “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.” “Gollum” will be the first live-action “Rings” movie since 2014’s “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.”