Earlier this year, it seemed like we were back in the early 2000s again, as a new Lord of the Rings movie was announced, being directed by Andy Serkis. The film could see old stars like Sir Ian McKellen and Viggo Mortensen come back to reprise their roles from the original trilogy, but one actor has already shot down the idea.
Hugo Weaving played Elrond in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but he’s not going to come back for any new films. “Personally, I’ve had enough of that,” he told GamesRadar. “It was great being in New Zealand on and off over a ten year period. I did then go back and work with the same team [director Peter Jackson and writer Fran Walsh] on a project called Mortal Engines which was going to be their next big franchise, but it died on its arse. So, I’ve had enough of Middle-earth I don’t imagine anyone would ask me to do it again.”
“Elrond is meant to be immortal and I’m aging. Elrond is one of the few characters, I think there’s only three or four of them, who spans through The Silmarillion, Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit. 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,” Weaving continues. “Shooting stuff on The Hobbit was starting to get slightly silly. I loved being a part of that franchise but I have absolutely no plans or desires to be a part of it anymore.”
Well, that’s a definite no for one major character, then. Still, there’s a chance we could see more Lord of the Rings actors willing to return for whatever Andy Serkis is cooking.