‘SPEED BUMPS’

Fate of Colbert’s Passion Project Revealed After Trumpy Billionaire Takeover

A report predicted that David Ellison’s Warner Bros. acquisition stalled Stephen Colbert’s new movie.

Stephen Colbert’s passion project is forging ahead despite its Trump-friendly billionaire’s attempted roadblock, according to a new report.

The former late-night host’s forthcoming Lord of the Rings movie, titled The Shadow of the Past, was rumored to be on the fritz after Trump buddy, Skydance CEO David Ellison, acquired Warner Bros. According to Knight Edge Media’s report, the film “hit major development speed bumps” when the newly acquired studio doubted the franchise’s profitability. According to Box Office Mojo, The Lord of the Rings trilogy grossed nearly $3 billion. The Numbers states that The Hobbit trilogy also grossed around $3 billion.

Still, the site claimed that the project, which Colbert is co-writing and developing, had been stalled, with filming “not expected anytime soon.”

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Peter Jackson, the co-writer, director, and producer of both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies, cleared up confusion during an appearance at Sitges Film Festival in Spain earlier this month, according to Collider.

“We have The Shadow of the Past, which is in the scriptwriting stage,” he said, adding that the franchise’s newest installment, The Hunt for Gollum, “is almost finished filming.” That film’s theatrical release is scheduled for December 2027, with Andy Serkis returning to star as Gollum, alongside Ian McKellen as Gandalf, Elijah Wood as Frodo, and Jamie Dornan taking over the role of Aragorn, originally played by Viggo Mortensen.

Ellison’s acquisition of Paramount last August ushered in the cancellation of Colbert’s The Late Show, as the merger, which needed Trump’s approval, was in flux when Colbert accused the company of “bribing” the president on air for handing over $16.5 million to settle his 60 Minutes lawsuit. Paramount announced Colbert’s firing and the end of The Late Show franchise days after the comments aired. The company insisted the decision was “purely financial.”

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Since absorbing Paramount’s properties, which include CBS News, Ellison has been repeatedly accused of fealty to Trump, for whom he threw a cozy dinner party to “honor” the president this past April. CBS News has undergone a MAGA-friendly makeover since Ellison took over and installed its new chief, Bari Weiss.

Ellison, the son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, won his bid over Netflix to gobble up Warner Bros. Discovery in a deal that also brings CNN under his family’s control.

Colbert has avoided the limelight since his show’s last episode, making only occasional appearances to accept awards. At last month’s Emmys, the former host told Vanity Fair that writing The Shadow of the Past was taking most of his time. “You ever written a Lord of the Rings movie?” he said to reporters in a clip the site shared. “It’s a full-time job.”

Colbert is developing the Warner Bros. Studio film alongside his son, screenwriter Peter McGee, and Lord of the Rings screenwriter Philippa Boyens.

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Eboni Boykin-PattersonEntertainment Reporter

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