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"I don't think I would be exaggerating," writes Andy Serkis, "If I were to say that Peter Jackson, as well as being one of cinema's most phenomenal movie-makers, is also one of life's great movement-makers."

To be fair, I think the fact that Serkis starred in Jackson's opus The Lord of the Rings is defense enough for him to hold this opinion, but when he wrote about the director recently, the Gollum actor revealed why he thought this as well.

Specifically, Serkis was writing in a special edition of Empire Magazine, which celebrated the 25th anniversary of The Fellowship of the Ring coming to theaters.

"One of Peter's greatest attributes," writes Serkis, "Is that he's a fantastic collaborator and is willing to listen to everyone's point of view, regardless of their age or experience. If they have a good idea in the room whilst something is being discussed, he'll pick up on it immediately, and if it truly resonates with him, it'll find its way into his creative choices."

Serkis goes on to say that that willingness to collaborate was something Jackson spread among the entire cast and crew, with the actor finding himself working with "visual-effects artists, animators, CG artists, and coders. It was to be a whole new education for me. And it was also in this arena of cross-fertilisation that I suddenly began to realise: here was an opportunity to foment my own burgeoning need to direct."

As you now by now, Serkis has filled that burgeoning need, havig directed Venom: Let There Be Carnage and even having taken on a role as Middle-Earth director with next year's The Hunt for Gollum. And look, I'm not going to jinx the movie by saying it'll nab an Oscar in '28, but if it does, I know who will be in Serkis's acceptance speech.

The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum is set for release December 17, 2027. In the meantime, all three Lord of the Rings movies (and the extended editions!) are streaming on HBO Max.

Whether you're Shirefolk, Elven, Dwarven, or something else, there's a good reason to love Lord of the Rings. We do! With that in mind, we have a dragon's horde of goodies for you:

• Lord of the Rings reading guide 
• Lord of the Rings watch guide
• The Lord of the Rings reunion panel you can watch 
• The OG Hobbit actors stay in touch every day on a groupchat 
• The true message of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy, according to Gimli himself - John Rhys-Davies.