Actor Hugo Weaving portrayed Elrond in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies, but could he return for the upcoming fantasy films in development? In an interview with GamesRadar, Weaving expressed that fans should not hold their breath. "Personally, I've had my fill of that," he stated. Weaving reminisced about his enjoyable time filming the trilogies in New Zealand but admitted he has "had enough of Middle-earth." Not only does he lack interest in reprising the role, but Weaving also doubts anyone would ask him to do so again.
Beyond The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, Weaving starred in the film Mortal Engines, directed by Lord of the Rings veteran Christian Rivers, with Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and Fran Walsh. Unfortunately, the movie flopped. Weaving noted that this was intended to be the team's next major franchise, "but it flopped miserably." Weaving also highlighted that Elrond is immortal, whereas the actor himself is not. He suggested that he might be too old to convincingly play the role today.
"Elrond is one of the few characters, I think there are only three or four of them, who spans through The Silmarillion, Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit," he explained. "But even when we went back to reshoot certain parts of Lord of the Rings, I was aware I was older than I was before. And shooting scenes for The Hobbit was starting to feel a bit absurd. I loved being part of that franchise, but I have no plans or desires to be part of it anymore."
The next live-action Lord of the Rings film, tentatively titled The Hunt for Gollum, is set for release in 2026 with Andy Serkis on board to star and direct. Other Lord of the Rings stars, including Ian McKellen (Gandalf) and Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn), have hinted at potential returns, but no official casting announcements have been made.
The next Lord of the Rings film is the animated feature, War of the Rohirrim, which is scheduled to hit theaters this December.
