Another Middle-earth-set film is on its way

Amazon Studios isn't the only place ready to take viewers to Middle-earth: New Line Cinemas revealed today that it's working with Warner Bros. Animation to produce an anime film called The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, described "original anime set in Tolkien’s fantasy world."

According to The Hollywood Reporter and others, the project is set to be directed by Kenji Kamiyama, who's worked on well-regarded anime projects like Ghost in the Shell, and it'll be writtenby Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews, the folks behind Netflix's The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. Furthermore, a key member behind The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies will be involved: Philippa Boyens, who co-wrote those original films. Director Peter Jackson and writer Fran Walsh apparently won't be involved, but "has blessed its making." (And according to Deadline, they could always step in at some point.)

The project is the latest adaptation of Tolkien's vast world, and it's a solid demonstration that media companies are keen to continue to build out their most recognizable stories into bigger franchises. Yay.