Since the release of the original film trilogy in the early 2000s, several Lord of the Rings spin-offs have been created, expanding on the universe. Most notoriously, The Hobbit in the 2010s, but newer television series have also gained popularity. Here is an overview of every LOTR spin-off and exclusive details about the upcoming film.
By Jayne Turner – Staff Writer
The Lord of the Rings
J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic high fantasy series was published between 1954 and 1955. Peter Jackson later turned it into a film series, releasing movies each year from 2001 to 2003.
The story follows Frodo Baggins, a hobbit who inherits the powerful One Ring. The dark lord Sauron created the ring to dominate Middle-earth.
When Frodo learns the ring’s true purpose, he forms a fellowship with trusted allies and begins a dangerous journey to destroy it before Sauron can reclaim its power.
Though the team begins to fall apart, Frodo and his friend Sam continue on the journey, often tormented by servants of the dark lord and various creatures of Gollum.
Meanwhile, Sauron’s power grows, causing an eruption of war across the Middle-earth kingdoms, who unite in resistance. Eventually, the ring is destroyed, evil overturned, and peace restored.
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The Hobbit Trilogy
The Hobbit was published in 1937, and they focus on Bilbo Baggins, Frodo’s cousin. The movies were, once again, directed by Peter Jackson and released in consecutive years from 2012 to 2014. Official titles are An Unexpected Journey, Desolation of Smaug, and The Battle of the Five Armies.
The plot follows Bilbo’s adventure as he joins a group of dwarves led by Thorin Oakenshield at the request of the wizard Gandalf. Their quest is to reclaim the dwarves’ homeland, which has been taken over by the dragon Smaug. Along the way, Bilbo encounters trolls, goblins, elves, and more. When they arrive at the mountain and defeat the dragon, tensions rise over ownership of the land, leading to the Battle of the Five Armies. Though the battle takes many lives, Bilbo walks away stronger and wiser.
The Rings of Power series
This Amazon Prime original divided fans, with some calling it a stunning visual successor to Peter Jackson’s original, and some saying that Tolkien’s established lore and source material went unconsidered. The first series premiered in 2022, and the second in 2024. There was talk of a third season, but unfortunately, production has been slow, and we have no official set release date.
This series is set thousands of years before The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, during the Second Age of Middle-earth. We follow Galadriel as she hunts for the return of evil after the defeat of Morgoth during a time of political upheaval and rising evil. At the same time, Sauron operates in the background, influencing situations that result in the creation of the Rings of Power, including the One Ring.
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The Hunt for Gollum
The movie will hit theaters in December 2027 after a slight delay from its original 2026 release date. Andy Serkis will direct the film and reprise his iconic role as Gollum.
It will focus on Gollum, exploring his life and the hunt for him by Gandalf and Aragorn before the events of The Fellowship of the Ring. It is drawn from J.R.R. Tolkien’s lore about what happened after Bilbo found the ring, but before Frodo’s quest began. It is expected to dive deeper into Gollum’s character and his place in Middle-earth.
Fans are cautiously optimistic. Many members of the original Lord of the Rings creative team are involved, which is a great sign. However, others prefer to wait for the trailers before forming an opinion. However, others worry that this movie may contain excessive padding, since Gollum’s narrative is short in the original books.
Overall, we will be on the lookout for more news about this exciting film!
