Viggo Mortensen Missing In The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum Has Me Nervous
by Jaron Pak · /FilmWell, it's official. Director Andy Serkis and his creative team on "The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum" are recasting at least one major character: Viggo Mortensen won't be back as Aragorn, son of Arathorn. Aragorn's role in the movie should be significant. In J.R.R. Tolkien's source material, he's the one who teams up with Gandalf and, eventually, sets out solo to track Sméagol down near Mordor and bring him all the way back to Mirkwood.
I know I'm not the only one who has been anxiously awaiting confirmation for who would play the exiled king in "The Hunt for Gollum." It's hard picturing anyone but Mortensen in the role. That's more than nostalgia speaking. In my mind, Mortensen's decision on whether or not to star in the upcoming film was a hinge point. A litmus test of sorts. In the opinion of this poor Tolkien fan, it was the most important indicator of whether or not we're going to get a high-quality Middle-earth movie when "The Hunt for Gollum" hits theaters in late 2027.
I'm not saying the movie will automatically be a dud if Mortensen isn't in it. I think a better way to put it is that if he were in it, I would feel really good about things. Mortensen doesn't pick roles lightly, including this one. When Mortensen was asked what it would take for him to return for a Middle-earth film like "The Hunt for Gollum," he replied:
"Generally speaking, I would like it to feel like a Tolkien story. First of all, the way it reads, that it feels connected, consistent with what Tolkien was writing about. His source material, what he was trying to say."
That approach isn't new. It's how Mortensen does business.
Viggo Mortensen has a selective attitude towards tentpole films
Viggo Mortensen is well known for his willingness to vet every role to make sure it's worth his time. I always think of how he turned down the chance to play Wolverine before Hugh Jackman took up the mantle, pointing to deterrents like scripts that deviate from the source material and the daunting commitment to reprise a character for a long time. After playing Aragorn, Mortensen similarly turned down any chance to appear in the "Hobbit" film trilogy. When chatting with The Guardian in 2013, the actor recalled telling a creative on those movies, "You do know, don't you, that Aragorn isn't in 'The Hobbit'? That there is a 60-year gap between the books?"
Here's where I start to get really nervous. Back in December 2024, steadfast Middle-earth movie producer and writer Philippa Boyens got my hopes up about bringing Mortensen back as Aragorn in "The Hunt for Gollum" when she said he was definitely welcome back. I'm not talking about reading between the lines here. She explicitly stated that it was up to Mortensen to return, and both Andy Serkis and "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" filmmaker Peter Jackson himself had spoken to him. Boyens added:
"Whether Viggo does it or not entirely depends on how good the script is. And he doesn't have a script yet. So, to be fair to Viggo, let's see if we write a good enough role and that he can find enough in it to see that it's a performance he wants to take on."
That was over a year ago. Presumably, with the "Hunt for Gollum" creative team getting ready to film in New Zealand, the script is at least mostly done. And Mortensen isn't on board.
Viggo Mortensen's absence in The Hunt for Gollum is cause for concern
Do you see where I'm going here? Again, I'm not saying this is going to be a bad movie. We know Andy Serkis will direct and play Gollum. Longtime Middle-earth architects Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens are producing behind the scenes. As of this writing, it's expected that "Lord of the Rings" veterans Ian McKellen and Elijah Wood will return, too, and we've learned that Kate Winslet is playing someone in the film as well. The movie's creatives are clearly trying to pull together a stellar cast and pour real resources and artistry into the project.
But the absence of Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn really is cause for concern. We don't have an official reason for why he turned "The Hunt for Gollum" down. Maybe it's completely unrelated to the quality of the film's script. Perhaps he couldn't get it to work with his schedule or doesn't want to commit to shooting in New Zealand. Or maybe he just doesn't want to do it, plain and simple.
But the breadcrumbs are there. Mortensen doesn't take on roles he doesn't like. Boyens indicated his involvement would depend on how he felt about the script. Now he's passing on the film. I'll be there for this thing on opening night and updating you folks at every step from here until then. Also, I'm a cup half-full kind of guy. I want to see the good here, and I'll keep trying to do that. But this latest bit of news has me nervous. Let's hope it's merely a hiccup on the way to yet another fun romp through the cinematic version of Middle-earth.
"The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum" hits theaters on December 17, 2027.