Fran Walsh: Last News

The Wrap.“But for all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by J.R.R. Tolkien remains largely unexplored on film. The opportunity to invite fans deeper into the cinematic world of Middle-earth is an honor, and we are excited to partner with Middle-Earth Enterprises and Embracer on this adventure.”The cost of the deal made between Warner Bros., New Line Cinema and Embracer Group — the current rights holders to Tolkien’s novels — has yet to be released.

Middle Earth is returning to the big screen.

The obvious question in David Zaslav’s reveal today that Warner Bros/New Line intend to to head back into Middle-earth with rights owner Embracer and expand the Lord of the Rings franchise is this: What do the Kiwi creatives who architected the Oscar-winning, billion-dollar-grossing franchise feel about the whole thing?

It was just announced that Warner Bros. is in the works on a new Lord of the Rings film franchise and original director Peter Jackson is sharing his thoughts.

In the wake of the breathtaking Avatar: The Way of Water soaring past the $2 billion global gross mark, the James Cameron-directed epic scored a best picture nomination, along with noms for production design, sound and visual effects. The snub of Cameron’s monumental achievement in the best director category continues the franchise’s complex relationship with Oscar.

Michaela Zee editor“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is only days away, and the Amazon Prime Video series has earned mostly rave reviews with a few mixed reactions (and one flat-out pan) as critics returned to Middle-earth.As Variety chief TV critic Caroline Framke wrote in her review: “It’s safe to say that Amazon throwing the weight of its coffers at this property has resulted in a perfectly winning adaptation that unfolds swashbuckling adventures with clear reverence and affection for the considerable mythos behind it.”Set during the Second Age of Middle-earth (thousands of years before the events of “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” and “The Hobbit”), the prequel series reintroduces characters from Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” film trilogy, including a young Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo). The Second Age consists of the rise and fall of Númenor, the creation of the Rings of Power and the formation of the Last Alliance.

Caroline Framke Chief TV Critic Several years (and several hundreds of millions of dollars) after Amazon bought the TV rights to “The Lord of the Rings” from the J.R.R. Tolkien estate, the mammoth effort to boost Prime Video’s profile with the same kind of phenomenon HBO found in “Game of Thrones” is upon us — and it’s just as grand, if not as downright surreal, as the occasion calls for. Sure, “Game of Thrones” might have solidified a television format for fantasy epics. But George R.R. Martin’s novels simply wouldn’t exist without Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings,” and bringing these stories to episodic life requires not just all the considerable money Amazon can provide, but a certain amount of guts from the TV writers taking it on now, some 85 years after “The Hobbit” changed the game. 

Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power has just been released – check it out below.It’s the last teaser before the forthcoming series premieres on Prime Video next week on September 2.In the new footage, Middle-earth is showcased in its Second Age as well as characters in the new season including Galadriel, Elrond, High King Gil-galad and Celebrimbor.Take a look at the final trailer here:Meanwhile, filmmaker Peter Jackson who directed the original film trilogy has said that he had been ghosted by the makers of the forthcoming TV series.“They asked me if I wanted to be involved – [writer-producer Fran Walsh] and I – and I said, ‘That’s an impossible question to answer without seeing a script,’” Jackson explained.“So they said, ‘As soon as we get the first couple scripts, we’ll send them to you.’ And the scripts never showed up. That’s the last thing I heard, which is fine.

The Lord Of The Rings trilogy.The filmmaker said that he wished he could experience the films like a regular fan once they were released, and approached Derren Brown to potentially help him.“When we did The Lord Of The Rings movies, I always felt I was the unlucky person who never got to see [them] as a coming-out-of-the-blue film,” Jackson told The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast.“By the time they were screening, I was immersed in it for five or six years. It was such a loss for me not be able to see them like everyone else.”He added: “I actually did seriously consider going to some hypnotherapy guy to hypnotise me to make me forget about the films and the work I had done over the last six or seven years so I could sit and enjoy them.

Peter Jackson has said that he was ghosted by the makers of the upcoming Amazon Prime Video Lord Of The Rings series.The anticipated new show The Rings Of Power is due to premiere next month, and is set thousands of years before the events of Jackson’s landmark film trilogy, which were released around two decades ago.The director has now said that he was approached by the show to be involved, and was told he would receive scripts, though didn’t hear anything further after that.“They asked me if I wanted to be involved — [writer-producer Fran Walsh] and I — and I said, ‘That’s an impossible question to answer without seeing a script,’” Jackson told The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast.“So they said, ‘As soon as we get the first couple scripts, we’ll send them to you.’ And the scripts never showed up. That’s the last thing I heard, which is fine.

In an alternate universe, Gomez Addams might have been the Gandalf we all know and love.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorIn the entertainment industry, the name WetaFX is synonymous with high-end visual effects. CEO Prem Akkaraju wants to make the firm, founded by filmmakers Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, a marquee name for original content as well.As he explains on the latest episode of Variety podcast “Strictly Business,” Akkaraju has helped reorganize the company’s operations to facilitate growth in content production, marking the next evolution of the New Zealand-based VFX company that at present employs about 2,000 people.“We’re a household name in the households that make movies,” Akkaraju said.

Jane Campion made Oscar history this morning as the first female director to be nominated for Best Director twice, after The Power of the Dog. She was previously nominated in the category for The Piano in 1994, but won in the original screenplay category.

Clayton Davis The fight for women to be recognized for their directorial achievements stretches back for decades, but, too often, the screenwriters aren’t given that same spotlight. However, this year presents a unique situation where female filmmakers have also penned the top awards contenders for adapted screenplay.

J.R.R. Tolkien fans will rejoice that New Line and Warner Bros.

The J.R.R. Tolkein franchise is heading back to the big screen in a fresh New Line and Warner Animation anime title The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.  I’m told that the Oscar-winning feature architects Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh are not involved with the project as we speak, but that will be determined down the road. Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings: Return of the King scribe Philippa Boyens will be a consultant on the new project directed by Kenji Kamiyama. The pic is being fast-tracked with animation work done by Sola Entertainment. Voice casting is currently underway. Pic will be distributed around the globe by Warner Bros. Pictures.