Would you take a look at Andy Serkis, whose last two films, “Animal Farm,” which he directed, and “Young Washington,” were produced by Angel Studios, and who now seems to be going against the grain by defending the lack of DEI casting in his next film.
Serkis is currently in New Zealand shooting “The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt For Gollum” and is addressing some of the pushback he has received over the cast being predominantly white. The questions have largely come from the BBC, which asked him about the “lack of diversity” in ‘The Hunt For Gollum,’ after the film announced only white actors among its main cast.
Serkis’ response? He says he is not in the business of “ticking boxes.”
“Tolkien himself was influenced a lot by Norse mythology; there’s a lot of that feeling,” Serkis told the BBC. “The Shire feels very, very much like a very, a very white, you know…”
Serkis continued: “They’re not very concerned about what goes on beyond the borders of The Shire, but they know they don’t want people coming in.”
He then followed that there “have been criticisms” and added: “This particular film is somewhat acknowledging that. But we don’t think we will be doing a politically correct just-casting-for-the-sake-of-casting-and-ticking-boxes version of the film. So, it’s only where relevant, basically.”
So far, the cast of ‘The Hunt For Gollum’ includes Ian McKellen, Elijah Wood, Lee Pace, Anya Taylor-Joy, Kate Winslet, Jamie Dornan, and Leo Woodall. Serkis is set to direct and will also return as Gollum.
Warner Bros. has dated ‘The Hunt For Gollum’ for worldwide release on December 17, 2027.
Starring Helen Mirren, the film reimagines the final chapter of Patricia Highsmith’s life through a fictional encounter with an ambitious young literary agent, played by Alden Ehrenreich.