Orlando Bloom Says He'd Love to See Legolas in Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, but 'AI Would Have to Come Into Play'

Orlando Bloom has discussed the possibility of reprising his iconic role as Legolas in Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, and has a clear idea of how the character would work.

The Hunt for Gollum, due out December 17, 2027, is confirmed to see star and director Andy Serkis reprise his role as Gollum, as the title suggests. This time, we’ll get to see what Gollum was up to in the years between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

But could other Lord of the Rings actors follow suit? In an interview with MovieWeb to promote his new film, Deep Cover, the 48-year-old Bloom discussed the possibility of Legolas returning for The Hunt for Gollum. Apart from very much being into the idea, he said that Legolas would have to be the same age as he was in the original trilogy, and to achieve that, the filmmakers would have to use AI-powered de-ageing technology.

“I think first of all, I’d like to see [Legolas] the same age as he was [in the original trilogy],” Bloom said. “So, AI would have to come into play. I think I’d like to see him lithe and breezy and warrior-like so AI would have to come into play.

“And I think if they asked me, I would say, ‘Absolutely!’ It would be so fun just to go back to New Zealand and spend however long they want me there for. Because honestly, if you want to be anywhere in the world right now, New Zealand is the place.”

Bloom played Legolas first in 2001's beloved The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, aged 24. 24 years later, is a Legolas return realistic? We do know Hunt for Gollum is set to see a number of famous faces return, including Gandalf. The 86-year-old Sir Ian McKellen, who played Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings, has said he'd be open to returning as the wizard so long as age didn't catch up to him. Aragorn actor Viggo Mortensen is also open to returning.

This week, Serkis touched on the tone fans can expect from The Hunt for Gollum, and issued an update on when filming will begin. Warner Bros. has said The Hunt for Gollum is in fact the first of two new Lord of the Rings feature films from Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens based on J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, as the company aims to make more of the franchise.

Amazon has of course kept the Lord of the Rings fire burning with its Prime Video series The Rings of Power. Season 3 is in the works. Elsewhere in Tolkien's world sits The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, the animated film that came out in December.

Photo by Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic.

Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.