Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum will be a very different experience from Peter Jackson’s two epic Middle-earth trilogies, and that’s a good thing. Set to premiere in December 2027, The Hunt for Gollum will take place within the events of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and brings the return of Andy Serkis as Gollum. Serkis will also direct the film.

Given its placement in the timeline, The Hunt for Gollum will have to be careful not to rely too heavily on nostalgia and the legacy of the movies that came before. Luckily, though, given the scope of this particular story, The Hunt for Gollum can easily carve out a niche of its own.

The Hunt For Gollum Will Be Less Epic Than LOTR & The Hobbit

This Isn’t A Sweeping, Large-Scale Narrative

In Tolkien’s writings, Gandalf and Aragorn search for the wretched creature around the time of Bilbo Baggins’s 111th birthday party, hoping to capture him before Sauron’s forces can.

Previously, Gollum himself set out to search for Bilbo, who took the One Ring from him during the events of The Hobbit. He learns of Bilbo’s idenтιтy, but before he can track him to the Shire, Gollum veers off course through Mirkwood into Mordor, lured in by the One Ring’s connection to its Master.

There, of course, he’s found, and after a horrific torture session briefly shown in Jackson’s adaptation, he reveals the names “Shire” and “Baggins,” leading Sauron’s Ringwraiths straight to Bag End. During this time, Gandalf is researching the One Ring while Aragorn scours Middle-earth, and he finally catches up with Gollum in the ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Marshes after the creature escapes his captivity.

While characters like Gandalf and Aragorn – and potentially Legolas and King Thranduil, if Mirkwood becomes as big a part of the story as I believe it will – will also be involved, this will, for the most part, be Gollum’s tale. The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit are epic, heroic adventures, filled with branched, intertwined storylines, large-scale battles, sweeping vistas, wizards, stewards, and kings.

While Gollum is an antagonistic character, he’s also a tragic one, corrupted by a force so strong it altered him beyond recognition. The Hunt for Gollum will, above all, be a character study, a small-scale story about the dangers of greed and vengeance. These themes are already part of Tolkien’s works, but Serkis’ movie could examine the deeper psychological aspects of Gollum’s character.

A Slightly Smaller Lord Of The Rings Movie Is A Good Thing

This Needs To Be A Character-Focused Story

In this case, bringing Middle-earth back into cinemas with a smaller-scale story is a wise move. Though Serkis has promised that it will have the same kind of feel as Jackson’s other Lord of the Rings productions, telling an entirely new type of narrative will prevent rabid comparisons between the adaptations. A smaller, character-driven drama has a wholly different purpose.

Besides, Prime Video currently has a lock on one of the biggest Middle-earth stories ever told, as The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will continue to chronicle the events of the Second Age in season 3.

If The Lord of the Rings wants to make a triumphant but risk-averse theatrical return, a more intimate story with links to well-known events is the perfect (if creatively safe) solution. We’ll just have to wait and see what Serkis and producer Peter Jackson have in store for The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum.

The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum is slated for release on December 17, 2027.