What we know about the new 'The Lord of the Rings' movie, as Ian McKellen says he's open to returning as Gandalf

Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav announced in an investor call in May that "Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum" would be released in 2026 and "explore storylines yet to be told," Variety reported.

Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, will reprise his role and also direct the new film. Presumably, the movie will be a prequel as Gollum died at the end of 2003's "The Return of the King."

In a statement released in May, Serkis expressed his excitement about the project, noting that the director of "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" trilogies, Peter Jackson, will produce the film alongside his writing partners, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens.

"Yesssss, Precious. The time has come once more to venture into the unknown with my dear friends, the extraordinary and incomparable guardians of Middle-earth, Peter, Fran, and Philippa," Serkis wrote. "With Mike and Pam, and the Warner Bros team on the quest as well, alongside WETA and our filmmaking family in New Zealand, it's just all too delicious…"

McKellen told the September edition of The Big Issue that he's had conversations about returning to play Gandalf in "The Hunt for Gollum."

The 85-year-old actor played the iconic wizard in the original trilogy from 2001 to 2003, and then returned to the role a decade later in 2013 for the prequel trilogy, "The Hobbit."

"Enthusiasm for 'The Lord of the Rings' shows no sign of abating … I can't tell you any more than that. I've just been told there are going to be more films and Gandalf will be involved and they hope that I'll be playing him," he said.

The actor pointed out that the film is still in the early stages of development, so he's unsure what it's about.

"When? I don't know. What the script is? It's not written yet. So, they better be quick," McKellen said.

It seems like Middle-earth fans will just have to be patient to learn more about "The Hunt for Gollum."