Warner Bros. has shared behind-the-scenes photos of Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum to mark Hobbit Day, offering a first look at Frodon and the Shire. The prequel film, currently being shot in New Zealand and set for release on December 15, 2027, will see Elijah Wood return as Frodon Baggins, the character he famously portrayed in the original Lord of the Rings trilogy. The images, posted on Warner Bros.' TikTok account, show Frodon from behind with his face hidden, likely due to a de-aging effect that will be added later in post-production. The film will reunite Andy Serkis, who plays Gollum, with his former co-stars from The Lord of the Rings: Ian McKellen as Gandalf and Elijah Wood as Frodon. Lee Pace will also return as Thranduil, the elven king he played in the Hobbit trilogy. New faces have joined the cast, including Jamie Dornan, who takes over the role of Aragorn from Viggo Mortensen, and Anya Taylor-Joy, who portrays a new character named Seren, described as a "formidable elf." Serkis previously announced that artificial intelligence (AI) will be used in The Hunt for Gollum to digitally de-age some of the original Lord of the Rings actors. This is needed because they must appear younger than they did 25 years ago in The Fellowship of the Ring. "There will be some digital de-aging for certain characters, and AI (machine learning) is part of the process," Serkis explained. The story of The Hunt for Gollum centers on various characters searching for Gollum to find out where the One Ring is. This period is briefly mentioned in the prologue of The Fellowship of the Ring and also appears in J.R.R. Tolkien's original writings. Peter Jackson, the director of the original Lord of the Rings films, has said he will assist Serkis if needed but intends to give him a great deal of creative freedom. "I'm here to help if needed. If I can be of help at certain moments, I'll be there. But I plan to give him as much freedom as necessary, because by letting Andy be free to direct this film, we will achieve the best possible result," Jackson said.