Elijah Wood hopes the new ‘Lord of the Rings’ movies will be more about ‘art’ than ‘money’

Elijah Woods as Frodo in “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.” | Deseret News archives

Elijah Wood, who starred as Frodo in the “Lord of the Rings” film trilogy, offered his opinion on the upcoming new “Lord of the Rings” movies which were announced by Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema in February — and he hopes they aren’t just about making bank.

Wood expressed his excitement at seeing the franchise expand during an interview with GQ, but hopes the new movies will be made at the same quality level as the originals.

“I’m fascinated and I’m excited. I hope it’s good. I’m surprised — I don’t know why I’m surprised because, of course there would be more movies,” he told GQ.

“Obviously at the core of that, is a desire to make a lot of money. It’s not that a bunch of executives are like, ‘Let’s make really awesome art,’” Wood added. “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.”

“But ‘Lord of the Rings’ didn’t come out of that place,” he said. “It came out of a passion for these books and wanting to see them realized. 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 a filmmaker — that it is with reverence for Tolkien’s material and enthusiasm to explore it.”

The Peter Jackson-directed trilogy, based on the books by J.R.R. Tolkien, is still widely accepted as one of the greatest fantasy achievements in film. The “Lord of the Rings” films won 17 Academy awards, multiple Golden Globes and other awards. The highly acclaimed movies set high expectations for the new films.

Jackson also directed the film trilogy “The Hobbit,” which is also based on Tolkien’s work. Both trilogies grossed over $3 billion worldwide, per Variety.

What will the new ‘Lord of the Rings’ movies be about?

Details surrounding the new movies are fairly limited. Apparently there will be “multiple” new movies, but specifics about the plot have yet to be revealed — but they will be based in the fictional universe created by Tolkien.

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“For all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by J.R.R. Tolkien remains largely unexplored,” Warner Bros. heads Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy said.

“We understand how cherished these works are and working together with our partners at New Line Cinema and Warner Bros Pictures, we plan to honor the past, look to the future, and adhere to the strongest level of quality and production values,” De Luca and Abdy added.

Filmmakers for the new movies have not been selected yet but Jackson and his main “Lord of the Rings” collaborators Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens have been kept “in the loop every step of the way,” according to a statement from Variety.

“We look forward to speaking with them further to hear their vision for the franchise moving forward,” Jackson, Walsh and Boyens said, per Variety.

Warner Bros. has not announced when the movies will hit theaters.

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How will the new ‘Lord of the Rings’ movies compare to ‘The Rings of Power’?

Amazon Prime released the first season of a “Lord of the Rings” spinoff series — “The Rings of Power” — last September. The series, which is expected to last five seasons, explored the “appendices,” which are published at the end of the third “Lord of the Rings” book, “The Return of the King.”

Just like “The Rings of Power,” the new “Lord of the Rings” movies will explore new territory within the Middle Earth universe — it is likely the series will take place during a different era, with different creatures and villains.

“The Rings of Power” is set thousands of years before “The Hobbit” and gives fans a look at a previous era, when Harfoots (hobbit-like creatures) roamed Middle Earth and powerful villains threatened the world, per Deseret News.

The series was received with mixed reviews — with a score of 83% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and 38% percent from audiences.

A second season to the series is currently in the making and is expected to hit Amazon Prime in 2024.

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