Ian McKellen gave life to Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, and as Peter Jackson returns to Middle-earth with The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, many fans want to know if the actor would reprise his role.
In a new interview, McKellen has addressed if he would return to play the wizard created by J.R.R. Tolkien in the film set to be directed by Andy Serkis and due to premiere in 2026.
McKellen told The Times of London that he’s heard “stirrings in Tolkien land,” and due to his role in Player Kings, he hasn’t “shaved in months.”
“But there is no script, there is no offer, there is no plan,” he added, jokingly answering if he would be interested in reprising his role, “If I’m alive.”
In an interview with Deadline earlier this year, Jackson talked about why focusing on Gollum was interesting.
“The Gollum/Sméagol character has always fascinated me because Gollum reflects the worst of human nature, whilst his Sméagol side is, arguably, quite sympathetic,” Jackson told us. “I think he connects with readers and film audiences alike, because there’s a little bit of both of them in all of us. We really want to explore his backstory and delve into those parts of his journey we didn’t have time to cover in the earlier films. It’s too soon to know who will cross his path, but suffice to say we will take our lead from Professor Tolkien.”
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