The most beloved fantasy series of all time continues to be Lord of the Rings and Hollywood has decided to return to the property once again. Aside from the forthcoming Amazon TV series, Warner Bros is now developing an animated movie set in Middle Earth that will be about a famed moment in the lore’s history. It will be a standalone Lord of the Rings anime called The War of Rohirrim.
That’s right. Fans will get a firsthand look at the battle referenced in J.R.R. Tolkien’s books delve into and the legendary figure, King of Rohan – Helm Hammerhand. According to a press release from New Line Cinema, the movie will be directed by Kenji Kamiyama and will be “fast-tracked for the big screen.”
Kenji Kamiyama is a major name in anime who was previously part of the classic Akira, 2012’s 009 Re: Cyborg, Ghost in the Shell SAC2045_ and is helming the upcoming Blade Runner: Black Lotus series. The filmmaker is teaming with New Line and Warner Bros Animation to tell the story of the ninth King of Rohan and Helm’s Deep, which is the setting of a huge battle of the War of the Ring.
The War of Rohirrim has connections to the famed Lord of the Rings trilogy from New Line and Peter Jackson as well. Philippa Boyens, who was on the screenwriting team of the original trilogy and Hobbit movies, will be consultant on this installment alongside its writers Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews, who previously developed Netflix’s Emmy-winning Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance series.
Helm’s Deep has been portrayed before in a Lord of the Rings movie in The Two Towers, but we’ve yet to see a full story dedicated to the storied king it is named after. The movie coming to theaters is said to be a standalone story that will expand the Lord of the Rings universe. It will be a first for fans to see J.R.R. Tolkien’s world presented in anime-style animation.
It is said to be a “companion piece” to the beloved movie trilogy, so expect some sort of throughline with the live-action movies. The announcement says that “story and artistic elements” of Peter Jackson’s movies will be present in The War of Rohirrim to connect the upcoming movie to the modern classic films.
There has not been a new Lord of the Rings universe movie since 2014’s The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, which capped off a second trilogy for the series. As a whole, the Lord of the Rings movies have made $5.8 billion in box office revenue following being a beloved book series that started captivating audiences back in the late 1930s.
Before The War of Rohirrim, the Lord of the Rings series is expected to drop on Amazon this December with a second season already on the way as well.
