Lord of the Rings' Ian McKellen calls Gandalf return a 'great surprise'
The Lord of the Rings actor speaks to Yahoo UK about his potential return as the iconic wizard
One of Ian McKellen's most iconic characters is Gandalf, the beloved wizard who helps Frodo, Sam and the Fellowship in their quest to destroy the One Ring in the film adaptation of JRR Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings — and he has been asked to return.
The actor, who is promoting his new film The Critic, tells Yahoo UK that it came as a "great surprise" to be approached to play the role again for Andy Serkis's The Hunt for Gollum but he is looking forward to the possibility of doing so. The story, which McKellen says may be split across two films, is based on a tale from the appendices of The Return of the King.
When asked if he felt he had unfinished business with the character, McKellen responds resoundingly with "no, I don't" but that didn't mean he wasn't looking forward to the prospect: "It was a great surprise to me when Philippa Boyens, who won the Oscar for the adapted screenplay from Lord of the Rings, said 'we're back in business'.
"There is going to be one or, I think, two movies, and the story is told from Gollum's point of view. Andy Serkis is going to direct these films, though it's produced by Peter Jackson, and Gandalf has a part to play."
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However, McKellen explains that while he has been approached, and the film has been announced, there is little else he can reveal as he adds: "But when I said 'what part is that?', they said 'oh we don't know'. And I said, 'well, when will it be?', 'We don't know that'."
"So it's going to happen, if it happens when I'm alive then I'm going to be playing Gandalf. If not, I don't know who will be."
The Hunt for Gollum is currently slated for a 2026 release, meaning it is likely that filming will start in 2025. McKellen previously returned to play Gandalf in The Hobbit trilogy, starring opposite Martin Freeman's Bilbo Baggins in the prequels alongside several other returning actors like Cate Blanchett and Orlando Bloom.
McKellen may not be the only actor to reunite with Serkis for the new film as Viggo Mortensen, who played Aragorn in the original trilogy, told GQ earlier this year that he would return for The Hunt for Gollum if it made sense for the story.
The Critic will be released in UK cinemas on Friday, 13 September.
