Nicholas Hoult may play ‘Lord of the Rings’ author J.R.R. Tolkien
J.R.R. Tokien was a world-famous British author and academic who drew inspiration from his horrific experiences in World War I to write “The Lord of the Rings” novels. And now, he’s set to be played by X-Men franchise veteran Nicholas Hoult.
According to Variety, negotiations are ongoing but Hoult is the top choice to play Tolkien, with the movie to be helmed by Finnish director Dome Karukoski. Hoult will next be seen in The Current War alongside Benedict Cumberbatch and will also star in X-Men: Dark Phoenix as Hank McCoy a.k.a. the Beast.
The Tolkien film, a Fox Searchlight and Chernin Entertainment project, has been in development since 2013, with a script by David Gleeson and Stephen Beresford. The story will focus on Tolkien’s friendships with his classmates and contemporaries – which included a certain C.S. Lewis – prior to the outbreak of World War I in 1914.
Tolkien served in the British armed forces from 1916 to 1920, then wrote “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” while working at Pembroke College. The latter book ultimately became one of the best-selling novels of all time with more than 150 million copies sold, and were the – shock horror! – basis for the immensely popular movie franchise. Tolkien died in 1973.
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