By Warner Bros. Pictures has restored a fan-made “The Lord of the Rings” film just hours after it was removed from YouTube due to a copyright infringement claim.
On Thursday came the news that Warner Bro. Pictures was in early development of “The Hunt for Gollum,” a new film based on Tolkien’s works to be released in 2026 that would see the return of actor Andy Serkis to the role along with directing.
Peter Jackson, who directed the original “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy and “The Hobbit” trilogy, will produce along with his regular collaborators Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens.
The title however was the same name as a long-standing fan film made by Independent Online Cinema which had amassed 13.6 million views over its fifteen years on YouTube. The non-profit fan film also had the blessing of the Tolkien estate.
However those going to check out said fan film after the announcement found only the message: “This video contains content from Warner Bros. Entertainment, who has blocked it on copyright grounds.”
Warner Bros., who owns the rights to the character of Gollum, quickly became the target of backlash on social media and Reddit.
According to The Independent, the removal was said to have been done in error and the film has now been restored. The new big-budget 2026 film is tipped to be the first of several new “Lord of the Rings” films in the works.
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