Stephen Colbert’s LOTR Movie Is Perfect for Viggo Mortensen’s Return

by

Although Andy Serkis’ The Hunt for Gollum isn’t due out for over a year, fans of Middle-earth have more to look forward to. Stephen Colbert, well-known for his deep understanding of J.R.R. Tolkien’s world, has revealed he’s writing a script for a new live-action movie, currently called The Lord of the Rings: Shadows of the Past. The film will be set after Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy and will be based on chapters from The Fellowship of the Ring that Jackson didn’t include in the original films.

The upcoming film, Shadows of the Past, has a chance to address a major letdown from The Hunt for Gollum: the absence of Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn. While the reason Mortensen didn’t return for The Hunt for Gollum remains unknown – with some suggesting it was due to his age or scheduling conflicts – a scene from the book’s ‘Fog on the Barrow-downs’ chapter offers a great way to include him in a cameo appearance in Shadows of the Past.

The Barrow-downs Were One of The Lord of the Rings’ Darkest Locations

The events forming the foundation of Shadows of the Past happen between the hobbits leaving the Shire and reaching the inn, The Prancing Pony, in Bree. To get to the East Road leading to Bree, Frodo Baggins and his friends had to travel through the eerie Barrow-downs, an ancient burial ground. This area was once part of the kingdom of Arnor, a sister kingdom to Gondor, but it was ruined over a thousand years before the story of The Lord of the Rings begins.

The hobbits encountered Tom Bombadil again in the Barrow-downs, a place where they’d previously met him in The Fellowship of the Ring. After saving them from danger, he shared the history of the area, and as he spoke, the hobbits had a peculiar vision. They saw figures of tall, serious men with shining swords, the last of whom was marked with a star on his forehead.

As a movie critic, I’ve always been fascinated by the ghostly figures in the Barrow-downs sequence. Tolkien subtly suggests these aren’t just any spirits, but echoes of Arnor’s past kings and heroes. And it’s pretty clear he’s hinting at one figure in particular being a vision of Aragorn himself. Think about it: when Aragorn finally becomes king in The Return of the King, he wears a white gem on his forehead called the Elendilmir, or Star of Elendil. The way Tolkien describes that gem—its light, its history—is remarkably similar to how he describes the spectral figure with a star on his brow in the Barrow-downs. It’s a clever bit of foreshadowing, and a beautiful connection between the past and future of Gondor.

Before Frodo met Aragorn properly, this ghostly appearance marked Aragorn’s first introduction in The Lord of the Rings. A first-time reader might not think much of the mysterious figure in the Barrow-downs, but knowing the rest of the story, the man with the star on his forehead is a brilliant hint of things to come.

Shadows of the Past Could Be Mortensen’s Return to Middle-earth

Casting Viggo Mortensen as a spectral appearance of Aragorn in the Barrow-downs would be perfect. His current age wouldn’t be a problem, as the vision could be from the past. Even if they wanted him to look younger, the ghostly effect would naturally hide any attempts at de-aging. Plus, it would be a short scene with minimal dialogue, requiring less commitment from Mortensen than taking on a lead role in a film like The Hunt for Gollum.

One of the biggest draws of the new Lord of the Rings films is the return of familiar characters from Peter Jackson’s original trilogy. However, this can be risky. Simply bringing them back isn’t enough; their appearances need to fit within the established world and history Tolkien created. For example, referencing Aragorn’s look from “Fog on the Barrow-downs” in Shadows of the Past would be a great way to evoke memories of the original films while staying true to the books.

5 Questions
Test Your Middle-earth Lore: Visions, Barrow-downs, and New LOTR Films
Your Top Score
—
Attempts
—
0
0
Report Error

Found an error? Send it so it can be corrected.

Read More

2026-03-30 00:38