Bad news Lord of the Rings fans, it looks like there won't be any more extended versions of the original trilogy on the way, as director Peter Jackson states there is simply not enough footage to make an 'extended-extended edition'.
"Are there great scenes that we never used? The answer is no," said Jackson in an interview with Empire. "There are bits and pieces, I guess. But if you did an extended-extended cut, or whatever it will get called, it would be disappointing. It would be the extended cut with a few extra seconds of something here and there; it wouldn’t be worthwhile doing."
The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which consists of The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King, totals over nine hours combined, and the extended versions add another 2 and a half hours on top of that already whopping total, taking fans over 11.5 hours to get through. Phew.
However, over the years, there have been rumblings of a ‘Mithril Cut’ containing a look at Aragorn and Arwen during their courtship. But co-writer Philippa Boyens said that even though there is some footage of that moment in Lothlórien, there's not enough to warrant another cut. But Jackson hopes to release a making of The Lord of the Rings documentary one day, using never-before-seen alternative takes and bloopers. "But to this day, I haven’t persuaded [the studio], because obviously it’s a big undertaking," added the filmmaker.
Alas, fans have a lot to look forward to, as even though Jackson's trilogy may be done and dusted, a new franchise addition is on the way, in addition to The Rings of Power season 3. Seeing Andy Serkis both take the directing reins and reprise his role as Smeagol, the upcoming movie The Hunt for Gollum is set before the events of The Hobbit films and The Fellowship of the Ring, when Gollum first got his hands on the One Ring. Ian McKellen is also on board to return as Gandalf.
The Hunt for Gollum will release on December 17, 2027. For more, check out our guide on how to watch all the Lord of the Rings movies in order, and keep up with new movies heading your way.
