Andy Serkis Wraps Week 1 of 'The Hunt for Gollum' Filming Ahead of 2027 Release
Updated
Updated · Variety · Jul 13
Andy Serkis Wraps Week 1 of 'The Hunt for Gollum' Filming Ahead of 2027 Release
3 articles · Updated · Variety · Jul 13
Summary
New Zealand production on “The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum” has completed its first week, with Andy Serkis directing in Middle-earth for the first time while also reprising Gollum.
Warner Bros. has slated the film for late 2027, nearly 25 years after “Return of the King,” with Serkis saying the shoot reunites much of Peter Jackson’s longtime crew alongside returning and new cast members.
Serkis said the movie will use AI only minimally, mainly for some de-aging, and that every shot is otherwise being made through traditional methods including miniatures and prosthetics.
He argued AI still cannot match an actor’s “authored performance” in motion capture and said performance-capture acting is overdue for recognition in the Oscars’ main acting categories.
Separately, Serkis is hoping his animated “Animal Farm” fares better when it opens in the U.K. and Ireland on July 24 after a politically contentious U.S. release that struggled at the box office.