The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies marks the end of the Hobbit trilogy. But it looks as though Gandalf himself thinks that the fantasy epic is far from over…
During an interview with the BBC at the London premiere of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, Ian McKellen revealed that he’s not sure whether this is really the end of their journey through Middle Earth.
“I was told by Peter in 2001 that that was the end, that it was all over,” he said. “Here we are thirteen years later. So I don’t believe necessarily that this is the end of the journey.”
Although McKellen seems to have been playfully speculating, this isn’t the first time we thought that Peter Jackson’s adventure through Middle Earth had come to an end… and after resurrecting the franchise with The Hobbit I can’t help thinking that Warner Bros. would be keen to keep it going.
Of course, there are still plenty of stories to tell from Middle Earth… and Tolkien fans will no doubt be drawn towards The Silmarillion – a collection of stories that predate both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
But will Peter Jackson return to create a pre-history of Middle Earth?
At the moment, that’s the big question… and it remains unclear. For one thing, Jackson has dedicated many, many years to the big screen adaptation of Tolkien’s work. Whether or not he wishes to continue in this world remains to be seen.
And then there’s the Tolkien estate. Rather famously, they’re not exactly happy with the movies to date… but could they stop any further films from being made?
Either way, it looks as though Ian McKellen sees a long shelf life for the adventures of Middle Earth.
“The movies will go on being seen,” he said. “People will come to them freshly for the first time… the thing goes on living.”
Whether or not that involves new instalments, well… we’ll have to just wait and see.
Do you think Peter Jackson will make any more Tolkien movies? Could The Silmarillion end up on the big screen? Let us know what you think in the comments below…
