Peter Jackson Not Joining Amazon’s ‘Lord Of The Rings’ Series (& Isn’t Joining The DCU Either)
I think it’s fair to say, you know you’ve made it in film when you’re getting more stories written about the projects you’re not doing than the projects you are! This has led to director Peter Jackson debunking rumours about two new projects he won’t be involved in.
Rumours had started to circulate that Jackson would be taking up a role in Amazon’s upcoming epic ‘Lord Of The Rings’ series. Given he is the man behind the live-action film adaptations of ‘The Lord Of The Rings’ and ‘The Hobbit’, it would have seemed like a natural progression for him to be involved in the tv show in some capacity too. It turns out that won’t be the case. Speaking to French publication Allocine, the director commented “I’m not involved at all in the Lord Of The Rings series. I understand how my name could come up, but there is nothing happening with me on this project.” Digital Spy then reached out to Jackson’s representatives to confirmed he is not involved in Amazon’s project at this time.
He went on to debunk rumours he’s been talking with DC about possibly helming a new movie project within the DC Universe. On that, he said “It’s not true, I have not had any discussions about it, I’m not a fan of comics, I’ve never read it, and so it’s not me. I’m not particularly interested in adapting one to the cinema, it’s not true at all. ” He concludes by saying “A DC film and the series Lord of the Rings, it’s done without me, but I’m happy. I have plenty of other projects that take up my time (laughter)!”
The other projects Jackson mentions includes an epic World War I documentary for BBC One. This sees the director collaborating with the Imperial War Museum to restore previously unseen footage and unheard audio interviews to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of the war.
The documentary plans to focus on “the experience of what it was like to fight in this war” rather than battle tactics and faceless commentary. “It’s the people that come to life in this film,” Jackson comments “It’s the human beings that were actually there, that were thrust into this extraordinary situation that defined their lives, in many cases.”
Jackson also has a film adaptation of Philip Reeve’s post-apocalyptic novel ‘Mortal Engines’ coming later this year. Set thousands of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, humankind has adapted and a new way of living has evolved. Gigantic moving cities now roam the Earth, ruthlessly preying upon smaller traction towns. Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan) – who hails from a Lower Tier of the great traction city of London – finds himself fighting for his own survival after he encounters the dangerous fugitive Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar). Two opposites, whose paths should never have crossed, forge an unlikely alliance that is destined to change the course of the future.
‘Mortal Engines’ is scheduled to be released in UK cinemas on Friday, 14th December 2018.
