Stephen Colbert is set to co-write a new "Lord of the Rings" film, "The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past," as his run as the host of "The Late Show" winds down.
Warner Bros. announced Tuesday that Colbert is developing the project with his son, screenwriter Peter McGee, and longtime collaborator Philippa Boyens.
The film is part of the studio's ongoing expansion of its Middle-earth franchise.
The story takes place after the events of the original trilogy.
According to the logline cited by Variety, "Fourteen years after the passing of Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin set out to retrace the first steps of their adventure. Meanwhile, Sam's daughter, Elanor, has discovered a long-buried secret and is determined to uncover why the War of the Ring was very nearly lost before it even began."
Colbert said the film is based on material from J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Fellowship of the Ring" that was not included in earlier adaptations.
"You know what the books mean to me, and what your films mean to me," Colbert said. "But the thing I found myself reading over and over again were the six chapters early on in ['The Fellowship of the Ring'] that y'all never developed into the first movie back in the day.
"It's basically the chapter 'Three Is Company' [Chapter III] through 'Fog on the Barrow-Downs' [Chapter VIII].
"And I thought, Oh, wait, maybe that could be its own story that could fit into the larger story. Could we make something that was completely faithful to the books while also being completely faithful to the movies that you guys had already made?"
Colbert developed the concept with McGee, creating what he described as a "framing device," before bringing it to director Peter Jackson. Over the past two years, they have worked with Boyens on the script.
Colbert has previously been involved with the franchise. He had a small role in "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" (2013) and directed Jackson and actors Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen and Elijah Wood in the 2019 short film "Darrylgorn," set in Middle-earth.
The announcement also included an update on another film in development.
Andy Serkis is directing "The Hunt for Gollum," scheduled for release in 2027.
In a video released by the studio, Jackson said, "Andy is doing a terrific job. It's looking amazing. The script is coming together really well and I think it's going to be a really good film."
Jackson described Colbert as a "very special partner" connected to the next phase of the franchise, with "Shadow of the Past" expected to follow "The Hunt for Gollum."
Warner Bros. has not announced a release date.
CBS will end "The Late Show" on May 21. Colbert has been host since 2015, succeeding David Letterman.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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