HAPPY GONDORIAN NEW YEAR!
A gift as precious as the ring is upon us.
Look, we all knew this was going to happen eventually. The Lord of the Rings made roughly 6 billion dollars – that’s 7,500,000 Númenórean castar (gold coins), which in Hollywood math means “make more forever.” But here’s the thing: they’re actually bringing in super-nerds to help get this one across the finish line.
Warner Bros. just announced The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past, and the creative team reads like a who’s who of Tolkien obsession. Philippa Boyens, the Oscar-winning screenwriter, Peter McGee…
And…Stephen Colbert.
Before you panic: Colbert’s not just some celebrity-geek name attached to a paycheck. He’s been a lifelong Tolkien acolyte—and not the casual fan kind either, but the “I build models of Khazad-Dûn and Ered Luin models in my free time” kind. His production company, Spartina Industries, has actual credentials: late-night television, series in development. He knows how to work in collaborative spaces. He’s joined by Peter McGee, a screenwriter with Star Wars and Outer Banks on his résumé. So it’s not a disaster waiting to happen.
The premise? Fourteen years after Frodo sails into the West, Sam, Merry, and Pippin retrace their first steps. But there’s a twist: Sam’s daughter, Elanor, unearths a secret that nearly toppled the entire War of the Ring before it started. It’s either genius fan service or the kind of sequel logic that makes you groan into your lembas bread.
Could go either way.
However numbers back the bet. And the past is present. The six films across both trilogies grossed nearly six billion globally—that’s big Númenórean King money. The original trilogy earned 30 Oscar nominations and 17 wins. The Fellowship sits in the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry. These aren’t just movies. They’re cultural monuments that somehow keep printing money.And that’s what Hollywood finds…ppprreecciiooouuss
So yeah. It’s happening. Middle-earth’s coming back, like Gandalf arriving on the third day atop Shadowfax. And they’re not pretending they invented something new—they’re just making sure the people who actually understand the world are the ones to expand it.
Smart or really jaded.
Either way, truly, this is a glorious Gondorian New Year’s Day gift indeed.
