The War of the Rohirrim, The Hunt for Gollum, and The Rings of Power

Watch the Trailer to War of the Rohirrim, Plus a guide to these three Tolkien adaptations

First The War of the Rohirrim Trailer Released Today

Mae govannen, friends,

Today the first trailer for The War of the Rohirrim dropped! If you haven’t seen it yet, watch it here:

What a trailer! We get some very clear ideas about the story itself but also how closely it ties in to the Peter Jackson trilogy (from the shots directly from the films to “PETER JACKSON PRESENTS” being the first text that comes up):

They know exactly what they’re doing including the Aragorn opens the doors of Helm’s Deep scene in this trailer, by the way hahaha (especially with the mirrored shot of Hèra opening the same doors later).

It’s like poetry. It rhymes.

It’s interesting (and entirely understandable) that they’re both trying to tie in so closely with the Peter Jackson trilogy but also bring something new to Middle-earth, both with the story itself of Helm Hammerhand and many of the details (focusing on the daughter, Hèra, who has mostly been created for this movie—Tolkien doesn’t even give her a name—and the anime style, etc.). Similar to Rings of Power, we’ll see if they manage to thread the needle and retain the spirit of Tolkien while expanding on his work at the same time. A few more images from the trailer:

Speaking of The Rings of Power, with The Hunt for Gollum scheduled to release in 2026 and The Rings of Power season 2 premiering next week (!!), I thought it might be helpful to clarify the details of each of these three adaptations for us all to help us keep them straight and know when to anticipate them. So in order of release date, here are the next three major Tolkien adaptations to grace the big and small screens.

Quick Guide to The War of the Rohirrim, The Rings of Power, and The Hunt for Gollum

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The Rings of Power: Season 2

Medium: Television

Showrunners: John D. Payne and Patrick McKay

Production Company: Amazon MGM Studios

Starring: Morfydd Clark (Galadriel), Ismael Cruz Cordova (Arondir), Charlie Vickers (Halbrand), Markella Kavenagh (Nori Brandyfoot), Daniel Weyman (The Stranger), Lloyd Owen (Elendil) Robert Aramayo (Elrond), Owain Arthur (Prince Durin IV), Sophia Nomvete (Princess Disa), Sam Hazeldine (Adar), Benjamin Walker (High King Gil-galad) Rory Kinnear (Tom Bombadil), Ben Daniels (Círdan the Shipwright)

Release Date: Season 2 Premieres August 29, 2024

Synopsis: “Sauron has returned. Cast out by Galadriel, the Dark Lord must now rely on his own cunning to rebuild his strength and forge the legendary Rings of Power, threatening to bind all peoples of Middle-earth to his sinister will. Season 2 plunges its most beloved characters into a rising tide of darkness, challenging each to find his or her place in a world on the brink of calamity.”

All signs are pointing to season 2 ramping up from the first season: more intense, more characters, darker, more action, more everything! And after the mystery of Sauron being the center of last season, this season is all about his deceptions and schemes. Personally I can’t wait and I’m excited to see how it all goes down.

You can find most of what I’ve already written about Rings of Power here:

Rings of Power at Jokien with Tolkien

(you’ll also be able to find future content on ROP collected on that page. I’ll share the link at the start of each ROP recap post or something).

Here’s the schedule for when each episode will air (reminder that each ROP recap/reaction from me will drop the following day):

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The War of the Rohirrim

Medium: Anime

Director: Kenji Kamiyama

Producers: Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and others

Production Company: Warner Bros.

Starring: Brian Cox (Helm Hammerhand), Miranda Otto (Éowyn, the Narrator), Gaia Wise (Hèra), Shaun Dooley (Freca), Luke Pasqualino (Wulf)

Release Date: December 13, 2024

Synopsis: “A sudden attack by Wulf, a clever and ruthless Dunlending lord seeking vengeance for the death of his father, forces Helm Hammerhand, the King of Rohan, and his people to make a daring last stand in the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg.”

Other than a few official images that were previously released, today’s trailer above is the first substantial preview that we’ve gotten for this film. It’s continuing the tradition of Lord of the Rings releases during December and looks to be a fascinating exploration of the history of the Rohirrim.

The Hunt for Gollum

Medium: Live-action Film

Director: Andy Serkis

Producers: Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh (also a writer), Philippa Boyens (also a writer)

Production Company: Warner Bros.

Starring: Andy Serkis

Release Date: 2026 (planned)

Synopsis: Nothing official yet, but Peter Jackson told Deadline “We really want to explore [Gollum’s] backstory and delve into those parts of his journey we didn’t have time to cover in the earlier films. It’s too soon to know who will cross his path, but suffice to say we will take our lead from Professor Tolkien.”

This one is still so far off that much of what we know could change. The title is still a working title and could change. Though there is “no script, there is no offer, there is no plan,” Sir Ian McKellen says he might be interested in playing Gandalf again: “If I’m alive.” Similarly, Viggo Mortensen commented that he would be open to reprising his role as Aragorn “if I was right for it in terms of, you know, the age I am now and so forth. I would only do it if I was right for the character. It would be silly to do it otherwise.”

But it will likely be a long time before we have more definite details for this project. Still, interesting that there’s another new project bringing us to Middle-earth once more.

It’s a great time to be a Tolkien fan, and with so many adaptations of his tales in the works there will likely be something for everyone! I’m excited to experience them all and share about them together with you all!

Speaking of sharing about them, one final note for today’s newsletter is that in addition to the Rings of Power recaps/reaction posts in the newsletter and the discussions in the comments on those posts, I’ve put up a Rings of Power discussion channel in the Jokien with Tolkien Discord server! If you’re interested in participating more in real time and having more of a forum style discussion than a comments section sort of one, follow the link below to join the server!

(You can also join if you just want to talk about Tolkien, not specifically ROP).

That’s all for this week, friends. Let me know in the comments what you thought about the War of the Rohirrim trailer or any of the other adaptations too!

Namárië!

Appendices

• What about second newsletter? Next week the shift in publication schedule here at Jokien with Tolkien begins! Look for a (probably usually short and sweet) bonus newsletter on most Tuesdays and a weekly recap/reaction to each week’s new episode(s) of The Rings of Power every Friday from 8/30 to 10/4.

• Speaking of October…we’re welcoming a new little hobbit to our family in October! As a result, I’m looking for some submissions for pitches for guest posts during the month of October, as I’ll be going on a planned break for a few weeks. (I’ll still be sharing content, but it will be a mix of content from the archives and that I’ve published elsewhere but not here in Jokien with Tolkien so far).
  If you’re interested, email me at jrrjokien@jrrjokien.com with your pitch and/or draft! Thanks, friends.

• Special shout-out and thank you to Karen M, who upgraded to a paid membership to the Jokien with Tolkien: Extended Edition this week! This is a reader-supported newsletter and Jokien with Tolkien: Extended Edition members help keep it coming to everyone’s inboxes week in and week out. If you too regularly get value, entertainment, encouragement, or inspiration from this newsletter, consider upgrading your subscription.
  

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