Elijah Wood Officially Addresses Returning As Frodo In New Lord Of The Rings Movie

© New Line Cinema Published Nov 12, 2026, 9:59 AM EST Ryan Northrup is a Senior Staff Writer on ScreenRant's Movie & TV News team, where he has authored nearly 5,000 articles, including features and reviews. A graduate of McMaster University, Ryan began his career in public relations before attending Vancouver Film School. There, he built lasting industry connections and optioned a feature film screenplay. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Frodo's return in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum gets an official response from Elijah Wood. 25 years after first playing the character in The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), and 14 years after his return in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), Wood is confirmed to be reprising his role as the hobbit in The Hunt for Gollum. Featuring an array of returning stars and fresh faces, the new Lord of the Rings movie entered production in New Zealand in July and wrapped earlier this week. In a recent interview with Deadline, Wood comments on what it felt like to return as Frodo in The Hunt for Gollum, explaining that getting back into the wardrobe invoked a feeling of "muscle memory." The actor calls the experience "transportive," expressing just how unique filming felt given his history with the franchise. Check out Wood's full comment below: “It felt like stepping back into time. You know, looking down…having this sort of muscle memory that I’ve seen these feet this way. I know this wardrobe. And that feeling is so wild. It’s so transportive. Suddenly 27 years are gone and you’re back in it again.” Wood is one of several original Lord of the Rings stars who is returning for the new movie, alongside Ian McKellen as Gandalf and Andy Serkis as Gollum. Lee Pace also reprises his role as Thranduil. Serkis, marking a franchise first, directs the upcoming film. Though the story focuses on Aragorn's quest to find Gollum before the creature can reveal the location of the One Ring to Sauron, Viggo Mortensen will not be reprising his role as the legendary Ranger. Instead, Jamie Dornan will be taking on the role, with other newcomers including Kate Winslet, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Leo Woodall. The Hunt for Gollum takes place during the events of The Fellowship of the Ring, after Bilbo's 111th birthday but before Frodo's departure from the Shire. It remains to be seen how extensive Frodo's role will be in The Hunt for Gollum. Though Wood returned as the character in the first Hobbit film, this was more of a cameo appearance. It's possible Frodo will be more integral to the story this time around, though Aragorn and Gandalf seem to be more central to the tale. After Peter Jackson directed the original Lord of the Rings trilogy and the more divisive Hobbit trilogy, he returns for The Hunt for Gollum as a producer and writer. Original trilogy scribes Philippa Boyens and Fran Walsh also return as producers, with Boyens and Phoebe Gittens getting screenplay credits. Rearrange the movies into the correct US release order. The Hunt for Gollum will release next year as J.R.R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth remains a fairly regular presence on screens. Amazon's The Rings of Power series just returned for season 3 out of a planned five, and The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim hit screens in 2024. The former continues to be divisive with audiences, however, and the latter was a box office bomb, putting pressure on Serkis' film to succeed. Many questions remain about The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, but Wood's return as Frodo is sure to be a key selling point given his association with the original trilogy. Though Frodo's on-screen return will be a big moment for audiences, it was clearly special to Wood as well. Release Date December 17, 2027 Director Andy Serkis Writers Arty Papageorgiou, Phoebe Gittins, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, J.R.R. Tolkien Franchise(s) The Lord of the Rings