The Next Lord of the Rings Movie Has a Major Challenge to Restore the Franchise’s Box Office Streak

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The upcoming Lord of the Rings film needs to bring the franchise back to its winning ways at the box office, but it faces a tough hurdle. Peter Jackson’s original Lord of the Rings movies are considered some of the best fantasy adaptations ever made, celebrated for both their financial success and how completely they brought J.R.R. Tolkien’s books to life. While The Hobbit films weren’t as critically acclaimed, each one still earned between $900 million and $1 billion in theaters. That successful run finally ended with the 2024 release of The War of the Rohirrim.

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim faced an uphill battle because animated films are generally harder to sell to audiences than live-action movies. Despite this, the film performed poorly, earning less than $10 million in the US and only $20 million worldwide (according to The Numbers). This was the lowest box office result for any Lord of the Rings movie, which has caused concern about Warner Bros.’ future plans for the franchise. This puts a lot of pressure on the next film, The Hunt for Gollum (scheduled for 2027), to improve things. The Hunt for Gollum needs to overcome a major hurdle and fix a problem that began back in 2014 if the franchise is going to regain its popularity.

The Lord of the Rings Franchise’s Problems Started Before The War of the Rohirrim

While The War of the Rohirrim didn’t perform as well as previous Lord of the Rings films, it’s not the first time Tolkien fans have been let down. Issues with the franchise began over a decade ago with The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, and things haven’t really improved since. Although The Battle of the Five Armies earned $956 million worldwide – a solid box office result – critics didn’t like it, and the Hobbit films as a whole weren’t well-received. Despite a strong cast and financial success, the films made questionable choices, such as stretching one book into three movies. These missteps disappointed fans, and the final Hobbit film marked a turning point for the series.

Following those releases, fans haven’t been happy with the recent direction of Lord of the Rings adaptations. Prime Video’s The Rings of Power proved controversial, with many criticizing how it portrayed Tolkien’s Second Age. The War of the Rohirrim also disappointed, echoing issues from The Hobbit trilogy and The Rings of Power – particularly problems with pacing and straying too far from the original stories. While the film’s disappointing box office highlighted its flaws, The Hunt for Gollum needs to learn from these failures if it wants to succeed.

The Hunt for Gollum Must Win Fans Back to the Franchise After Previous Disappointments

The upcoming film, The Hunt for Gollum, could breathe new life into The Lord of the Rings franchise, but it faces an uphill battle. Fans are understandably cautious about new installments, as nothing has matched the quality of the original movies. While the film’s return to the timeline and characters of the trilogy is encouraging, it may not be enough to overcome the disappointment caused by recent releases. Adding to the challenge, it’s scheduled to open on the same day as the highly anticipated Avengers: Secret Wars.

The upcoming Lord of the Rings movie faces a big challenge to match the success of previous films. To keep the franchise strong, it also needs to win back fans’ confidence. Having Andy Serkis direct and reprise his role as Gollum is a good start, and Peter Jackson’s involvement is also encouraging. However, The Hunt for Gollum might still have trouble attracting audiences. The filmmakers will need to be especially careful to satisfy those who do see it, as many fans have been disappointed in the past.

How the Next Lord of the Rings Movie Can Regain Viewers’ Trust

To gain fans’ acceptance, The Hunt for Gollum could learn from recent projects like The Rings of Power and The War of the Rohirrim. A key takeaway is to avoid making drastic changes to the original story. This is a challenge because Tolkien’s writings only briefly mention the events in the film, meaning a lot will be open to interpretation and expansion. However, the movie should stick closely to the spirit and themes of Tolkien’s work whenever possible, avoiding choices that feel out of character for the source material.

The upcoming 2027 film needs to strike a balance. It shouldn’t rely too much on familiar elements from previous movies or try to be radically different. Simply including cameos and nostalgic references won’t be enough to win back fans who have lost interest. However, it is important to stay true to the original trilogy, using the same actors and respecting the established timeline of Frodo’s adventure. A significant departure would feel disjointed and alienate viewers, especially those who are fans of the book adaptations. The success of The Hunt for Gollum is crucial, as it could determine whether more Lord of the Rings stories are made – and whether the studio will invest in them.

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2025-12-10 21:40