Warner Bros. and New Line are developing new Lord of the Rings movies!

Here’s a crazy bit of movie news that’s going to hit your nerves with a lot of Lord of the Rings fan. New Line Cinema and Warner Bros Pictures are partnering with Embracer Group AB’s Middle-Earth Enterprises in a new multi-year deal to develop a series of new The Lord of the Rings movie!? What!?

CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery David Zaslav shared this huge news during the company’s call to discuss its fourth quarter 2022 earnings. Zaslav has said in the past that they were looking to focus on developing bigger franchises for the big screen. Now they’re about to reboot some of the greatest movies that have ever been made, and I’m not a fan of what they’re doing.

It’s been 20 years since New Line released Peter Jackson’s epic The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which won 17 Academy Awards. Jackson later directed The Hobbit trilogy, and the total six films have grossed nearly $6 billion at the worldwide box office.

Lee GuinchardCEO of Embracer Group’s Freemode operating group, said in a statement, “Following our recent acquisition of Middle-earth Enterprises, we are thrilled to embark on this new collaborative journey with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, bringing the JRR Tolkien’s incomparable world returns to the big screen in new and exciting ways.We understand how much these works are appreciated, and by working together with our partners at New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, we intend to honor the past, look to the future and join the more high level of quality and production values.

Co-Chairmen and Chief Executive Officers of the Warner Bros Pictures Group Michael DeLuca AND PamAbdy he added, “Twenty years ago, New Line took an unprecedented leap of faith to bring the incredible stories, characters and world of The Lord of the Rings to the big screen. The result was a landmark series of films that have been embraced by generations of fans. But for all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by JRR Tolkien remains largely unexplored in film. The opportunity to invite fans deeper into the cinematic world of Middle-earth is an honor and we are thrilled to partner with Middle-earth Enterprises and Embracer on this adventure.”

New Line and Warner Bros Animation are currently producing the anime film The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim, the story of which is set 183 years before the events of The Lord of the Rings. The film, which chronicles the fate of the House of Helm Hammerhand, the legendary king of Rohan, will be released in theaters on April 12, 2024.

I’m fine building on the world and stories of Middle-earth and expanding on Jackson’s work, but…remaking them? It’s something that I and many other fans will struggle with.

Middle-earth Enterprises holds worldwide exclusive film, game, merchandising, art and other rights to select Tolkein literary works including The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.