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is doubling down on Middle-Earth, announcing that a new raft of “Lord of the Rings” movies are in the works.
The company has brokered a deal to make “multiple” films based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” books, Chief Executive
David Zaslav
said in an earnings call Thursday.
Warner Bros. Discovery and its New Line movie studios will explore more stories within the “Lord of the Rings” universe, the company said.
“Twenty years ago, New Line took an unprecedented leap of faith to realize the incredible stories, characters and world of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ on the big screen,” Warner Bros. Pictures Group Co-Chairs and CEOs Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy said in a statement.
“But for all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by J.R.R. Tolkien remains largely unexplored on film,” they added.
The original three films, released between 2001 and 2003, were huge box office draws and won a total of 17 Academy Awards. Directed by New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson, the trilogy was followed by three more films based on “The Hobbit” books. Combined, the six films earned nearly $6 billion at the box office worldwide, according to Warner Bros. Discovery.
The companies didn’t confirm whether or not Mr. Jackson was attached to the new projects.
Mr. Zaslav has made re-energizing the movie operations at Warner Bros. a priority. Last month, the company’s DC Studios unveiled a slate of five films and five television series based on DC Comics titles that Mr. Zaslav hopes will be a solid competitor of
Walt Disney Co.
’s Marvel in the race for superhero domination.
Warner Bros. Discovery reported a loss of $2.1 billion, or 86 cents a share, compared with a profit of $38 million, or 8 cents a share, the year prior. Analysts were looking for a 35-cent loss a share.
Write to Gareth Vipers at gareth.vipers@wsj.com
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