The Embracer Group recently acquired The Lord of the Rings IP, and at first everyone assumed it was to make video games. But in the press release they've also expressed their interest in a series of spin-off movies for big characters like Gandalf, Gollum and Galadriel.
There's a little bit to unpack before we get to the meat of the story, so we'll be as concise as possible. The Embracer Group is a massive media conglomerate, mainly involved in video games (basically a Swedish Tencent). Recently, they purchased the rights to the fictional works of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Tolkien's estate is very complexly divided, and we won't get into it all now, but they bought the rights to make media based on the LotR trilogy and The Hobbit (not exclusive rights, don't worry, other projects like the Gollum game and the Rings of Power can continue just fine).
Now, when we saw the news, we assumed (along with everyone else) that they were buying the rights, so they could make RPGs set in Middle Earth and such. But, it turns out they plan to do a lot more than just video games with these fictional works. Specifically, they're looking into spinoff movies.
Embracer Group Exploring Spinoff Movies For Big LotR Characters
The Embracer Group have specifically outlined ways they could use their recently acquired rights to LotR and the Hobbit, and in the press release they mention spinoff movies based on the bigger characters. Here's exactly how they chose to word it:
Other opportunities include exploring additional movies based on iconic characters such as Gandalf, Aragorn, Gollum, Galadriel, Eowyn and other characters from the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien.
A strong collection of potential protagonists there. We're fairly certain Galadriel is going to be the "main character" in the Rings of Power however, so they probably wouldn't go with her again so soon. Ideally we would see Aragorn's life as a ranger, but really any of those characters could be used to produce something fantastic. Only time will tell.
You won't believe where else we've found Gandalf...