The Lord of the Rings film franchise is set to continue in the near future, and it may feature a very familiar Elven face, played by Orlando Bloom. A new film by actor/director Andy Serkis is in the works, titled Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, and it could be the avenue in which Bloom makes his return to Middle-earth. Bloom reprised his role as Legolas in Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy, and it seems like the actor is game for anything LOTR-related as long as Jackson is involved.
In an interview with Variety, Bloom was asked if he was interested in returning to the Lord of the Rings franchise. Bloom is not sure how a potential return would work, but stresses that as long as Peter Jackson, who is producing The Hunt for Gollum, is involved, then he is game for anything. It’s clear that the actor fondly remembers the films as a vital part of his life and professional career, so Bloom will do what it takes to repay Jackson.
“Oh, man, those things are amazing. Yeah. I don’t know how they’d do it. I guess with AI you can do anything these days. But, if Pete [Peter Jackson] says jump, I say, ‘how high?’ I mean, he started my whole career.”
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Are you worried about the expansion of the Lord of the Rings franchise?
How do you feel about the expansion of the Lord of the Rings franchise? Since the original trilogy of Peter Jackson films, we’ve seen three Hobbit films, Prime Video’s The Rings of Power, and the upcoming The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim anime film. We also have The Hunt for Gollum, which is currently aiming for a 2026 release, helmed by Andy Serkis, with Peter Jackson acting as a producer. Clearly, the world of Middle-earth is expanding quite rapidly at this point, and I’m sure many fans are worried about the quality of the projects being consistent. I mean, after all, even the Hobbit films, with Peter Jackson in the director’s chair, aren’t praised anywhere near as much as The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I know many fans weren’t pleased with The Rings of Power either, though I enjoyed it for what it was. I believe The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim will be good, but the animation medium likely won’t be quite as big a deal as a live-action feature-length film.
Andy Serkis’ Lord of the Rings Movie May Be Using AI
While speaking with Variety, Bloom expanded upon his thoughts on returning to the film series that made him, mentioning that he’s talked with Andy Serkis already about his upcoming Gollum movie. Although Bloom was not sure what the latest film The Hunt for Gollum entails, he says Serkis mentioned AI was a tool to make the movie and, presumably, the actor’s potential return possible.
“I really don’t know what [they are planning]. I did speak to Andy [Serkis] and he did say they were thinking about how to do things. I was like, ‘How would that even work?’ And he was like, ‘Well, AI!’ and I was like, ‘Oh, OK!’ It was a pretty magical time in my life, and it’s one of those things where there’s not a downside to it.”
Of course, it’s not clear what kind of AI Orlando Bloom is referring to, but it’s possible that Serkis was pointing out the technology as a means to bring the ageless Legolas back to his prime. Deepfake technology, and evolving variations of it, has served as a means to either resurrect deceased actors in a film, or simply de-age characters like Luke Skywalker in The Mandalorian. Whatever the case may be, it is hard to imagine Serkis, or Peter Jackson for that matter, pushing visual effects to their cutting edge without artistry.
