Jamie Dornan says he cried on being cast as Aragorn in The Hunt for Gollum

Dornan takes over the role originated by Viggo Mortensen in a film due in theaters on Dec. 17, 2027.

Jamie Dornan has said he cried when he learned he had been cast as Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. Asked how he reacted to the news, the Northern Ireland native told Entertainment Tonight: "I cried. I actually cried."

Dornan plays Strider, also known as Aragorn, a role originated by Viggo Mortensen, who played the character in Peter Jackson's Oscar-winning trilogy.

Dornan explained what the part means to him:

"It's like a dream. It's an absolute dream and an honor to be entering that world in any capacity, let alone playing a character of such significance and such admiration, and that we all love and love what Viggo did with that role in those three films."

Filming has already wrapped. Dornan said he was "incredibly honored" and had "a brilliant time", and he described the shoot as "an incredible experience". He said he finished about three weeks before the interview. He hoped that "people welcome our story into that world", adding that a lot of people care about it.

Last month, in an interview with L'Officiel, Dornan said there was "pressure" on him to live up to Mortensen's take on the role. "His performance is one of my all-time favorites, and I feel honored to try to recapture at least some of the energy he originally brought to the character. There's no part of me that's trying to outdo him," he said.

Earlier this year, director Andy Serkis, who also plays Gollum, told the BBC that the film "sits absolutely between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogies, and books in fact." The director also said it "is very much a deep dive into the psychology and history of Gollum before he became Gollum, but also with a very burning question from Gandalf about what the potential origin of this ring that Bilbo Baggins has is."

According to Empire, as reported by People, the film will follow Aragorn and Gandalf on a quest to find Gollum. Warner Bros. announced Dornan's casting at CinemaCon 2026 in Las Vegas in April. Peter Jackson is producing alongside Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf, Elijah Wood as Frodo and Lee Pace as Thranduil, and Kate Winslet, Leo Woodall and Anya Taylor-Joy are also in the cast.

The film is set to open in theaters on Dec. 17, 2027.