A clash of the titans is set to ensue at the box office in years to come with The Lord of the Rings facing off against Star Wars. This will entail a massive fantasy contest, with each movie vying for the higher box office profits. At worst, one movie could end up cannibalizing the other, eclipsing the pull of the other and hogging all the cinema-goers that week or month. Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings movies are widely known as some of the best fantasy movies in the world, which would seem to put Lord of the Rings in good stead against Star Wars.
However, the latest release in the Lord of the Rings movie franchise didn’t perform quite as well. The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim‘s reception was a bit disappointing upon its release on December 13, 2024, the first official Lord of the Rings movie since 2003. Meanwhile, Star Wars has been releasing movies and TV shows throughout the 2000s. These are just a couple of many factors at play, but it is certainly the first time a conflict of this kind has occurred to this extent between the two franchises, making it hard to know how things will pan out.
LOTR & Star Wars Are Both Set To Release New Movies In December 2027
December 2027 Will See Two Huge Fantasy Releases
Both The Lord of the Rings and Star Wars franchises have a movie slated to come out in the last month of 2027. Lord of the Rings’ new Gollum movie is the franchise’s entry for the 2027 holiday season. This incredibly exciting venture will be directed by Andy Serkis, who will also star as Gollum, reprising his historic role from the original trilogy. This story will be told from Gollum’s perspective and will probably cover Gandalf and Aragorn’s hunt for him during the first of Jackson’s groundbreaking movies. It is also likely the movie will feature some of the original Fellowship of the Ring.
| The Hunt For Gollum Timeline |
Year |
Month |
Date |
| Bilbo’s birthday party |
3001 |
September |
22 |
| Gandalf started seeking news of Gollum and called on Aragorn’s help |
3001 |
Unknown |
Unknown |
| Gandalf and Aragorn renewed their hunt for Gollum |
3009 – 3017 |
Unknown |
Unknown |
| Sauron captured and tortured Gollum |
3009 – 3017 |
Unknown |
Unknown |
| Sauron let Gollum go |
3017 |
Unknown |
Unknown |
| Aragorn caught Gollum |
3017 |
Unknown |
Unknown |
| Gollum escaped |
3018 |
June |
20 |
| All trace of Gollum lost, Gollum thought to have entered Moria |
3018 |
August |
Unknown |
| Frodo left Bag End |
3018 |
September |
23 |
| Council of Elrond, meeting of the Fellowship |
3018 |
October |
25 |
| Fellowship left Rivendell |
3018 |
December |
25 |
| Fellowship reached West-gate of Moria |
3019 |
January |
13 |
Using both the characters and the timeframe of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the Gollum movie (working title The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum) constitutes a real Lord of the Rings revival. Contrastingly, the Star Wars movie coming out is unconfirmed in its storyline or premise. While The Hunt for Gollum‘s original release date of 2026 was delayed, Star Wars has booked a release date for December 17 but has not confirmed which movie will premiere. Shawn Levy and Simon Kinberg are both exploring productions, and it could be one of these.
Lord Of The Rings Beat Star Wars In 2002 – But It Wasn’t A Head-To-Head Fight
LOTR & Star Wars Have Had Releases In The Same Year Before
The Star Wars and Lord of the Rings movie franchises have released movies in the same year before, but never in the same month. This makes The Lord of the Rings vs. Star Wars clash of December 2027 an unprecedented occurrence, and the two movies face inevitable comparisons. The competition is made all the more noteworthy by how it could have a significant impact on the revenue of either franchise and could ultimately decide their future. But this huge month for the box office was precipitated by a similar event in 2002.
While Amazon’s Rings of Power explores Lord of the Rings’ Second Age, Warner Bros. situates all its movies in the Third Age. The latest point in this timeline is the Best Picture winner The Return of the King, which is preceded by the 2002 movie, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Like the Gollum movie, The Two Towers launched in December. However, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones was released in May of that year. So, while The Two Towers was higher-grossing than Star Wars: Episode II, that doesn’t necessarily indicate how the 2027 clash will transpire.
