Would it be legally possible to release a new Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit movie series, which instead of butchering the books actually honors them? [closed]

Question

Did the Tolkien estate sell the movie rights to Hollywood, or could they still allow somebody else to make an actual LOTR/Hobbit movie series?

That is, one which actually follows the books' story instead of butchering them completely and inventing all kinds of nonsense?

After recently re-reading them, then watching the existing movies, I felt a deep sadness not just because of the miserable viewing experience, but the thought that the big masses of people have no idea what LOTR/Hobbit are actually about, as they have only seen those ridiculous movies.

I also disagree violently with those who defend the LOTR movies but are negative toward the Hobbit ones. I find both to be equally nonsensical and completely detached from the source material.

Almost every scene in those existing movies bore me out of my mind, and it's not because they are "slow". They certainly aren't. They are just an endless series of ridiculous stunts, shaky cameras and physics-defying nonsense, and even the calm scenes manage to be completely uninteresting due to how dumbed down the story and dialogue is.

I want to see real LOTR/Hobbit movies in my lifetime. Could it be done legally?

Answer 1

Generally, when someone buys the "movie rights" to a work, it's an exclusive deal, though often limited to a set period of time.

So, to do something like this, one would need the cooperation of whoever currently owns those rights. If they are currently still in the hands of Jackson et al, then there's probably no path forward (at least for now). If/when the rights revert back to the estate, then the heirs will want to make a profit and they may or may not care about "artistic integrity" or anything else that gets in the way of making the profit. They also will want to deal with someone who can show that they have the resources to actually complete the project and generate that profit.

TLDR - sure, anything's possible if you're willing to spend enough money. In this case, you're probably talking hundreds of millions of dollars.

I think it's also relevant to bring up "a tale of two movies", namely The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged (Part 1). Same author, two very different results.