Even before coming back to cinemas, the Lord of the Rings films are showing stronger pre-release numbers than some big movies planned for 2026. Directed by Peter Jackson, the original trilogy—released between 2001 and 2003—made nearly $3 billion globally and won 17 Academy Awards. Fathom Entertainment will bring the films back to theaters in 2026 to celebrate the franchise’s 25th anniversary.
According to Variety, the upcoming re-releases of the Lord of the Rings films – The Fellowship of the Ring on January 16th, The Two Towers on January 17th, and The Return of the King on January 18th – have already sold about 407,000 tickets in advance, generating around $5 million in domestic box office revenue.
Even before the first showings begin in a growing number of cinemas – as Fathom Entertainment adds more screenings to meet high demand – the three Lord of the Rings films have collectively earned more at the domestic box office than all but two of the biggest new releases this year.
As of today, the recent re-releases of The Lord of the Rings haven’t performed as well as two other films. Primate, a creature feature, earned $11.9 million domestically across 2,964 theaters, and Greenland 2: Migration, a post-apocalyptic sequel, brought in $8.9 million in 2,710 theaters.
So far, these new films have earned more at the box office than a couple of other recent releases: the zombie movie We Bury the Dead starring Daisy Ridley ($3.5 million from 1,172 theaters) and the Syria-based drama I Was a Stranger from Angel Studios ($1.3 million from 1,400 theaters).
The Lord of the Rings trilogy returned to cinemas in 2024. After a similar period, it had sold just 246,000 tickets.
The re-release earned a total of $8.2 million. If the 2026 re-release performs similarly, it could potentially bring in $13.6 million, exceeding the domestic earnings of all four major new films released this year.
The recent renewed interest in The Lord of the Rings might be due to the 25th anniversary celebrations. It’s also possible that the re-release is doing well because it didn’t come out close to a brand new movie in the series – 2024 saw the release of the animated spin-off, The War of the Rohirrim.
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2026-01-14 22:21