Viggo Mortensen uses Aragorn's sword in his new movie, but had to ask Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson for permission first

Viggo Mortensen in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King — (Image credit: New Line Cinema)

Viggo Mortensen has confirmed he uses Aragorn’s sword in his new movie which isn't a Lord of the Rings movie, it's actually a romantic western.

The actor revealed in an interview with GQ that he uses the iconic sword in his latest flick The Dead Don’t Hurt, a 19th-century western which he himself wrote and directed. "We had everything for this sequence with a knight," Mortensen explained, "Everything was right, and then I said, well, we should have a sword. And I did look and there were some good ones and I thought, well, it might be kind of good to use [Aragorn’s sword] that I had because it’s really good."

Mortensen played Aragorn in all three of Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings movies. Although the actor kept the sword, known as Andúril, after filming wrapped on The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, he knew he had to ask the helmer for permission to show it on screen again. "I did ask Peter Jackson if he’d be all right with it," Mortensen continued. "He said it was okay with him but that I should ask the movie company. So I contacted them and they were fine with it."

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Set during the American Civil War, The Dead Don’t Hurt stars Mortensen as a Danish immigrant Holger Olsen who goes off to fight leaving his beloved Vivienne Le Coudy (Vicky Krieps) to fend for herself in an unruly place controlled by a corrupt mayor. Upon Olsen’s return, the couple must salvage their love and make peace with what the war has done to one another. The movie also stars Solly McLeod, Jason Clarke, and Danny Huston.

In the world of Middle-earth, a new batch of Lord of the Rings movies are on the way, including a Gollum movie welcoming back star Andy Serkis, which Mortensen is open to appearing in. As for spin-offs, The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 will soon hit Amazon Prime Video, after its first trailer dropped earlier this May.

The Dead Don’t Hurt hits theaters May 31 in the US and is currently slated for a June 28 release in the UK. For more, see our guide on how to watch The Lord of the Rings in order, or keep up with upcoming movies heading your way this year.

I'm the Junior Social Media Editor here at GamesRadar+, handling all of Total Film's social platforms. However, I also write, covering all things film and TV for the site's entertainment section. I joined GamesRadar+ in 2023 and have been here ever since. I previously worked in communications after graduating with an MA in journalism. In my spare time, you can find me binging horror movies or getting lost in a cosy little game on my Switch.