Movie About Lord of the Rings Author's Life Finds a Director

Middle Earth, the upcoming biopic about The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien, has found a director. Deadline reports that James Strong is attached to direct the film, which the site reports will tell the story of the "tumultuous events" that inspired The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

More specifically, it will cover his relationship with his wife Edith Bratt and Tolkien's time in World War I. The author spent four years in the war, a time that influenced his acclaimed fantasy stories to come.

Strong has worked on TV shows like Downton Abbey and Broadchurch. He also directed episodes of Doctor Who and the Hulu adaption of Stephen King's 11.12.63. The script for Middle Earth was written by Angus Fletcher, who Deadline reports spent six years conducting research and interviews for the film.

There is no word yet on who would play Tolkien and Bratt in the film or when it will come out.

Middle Earth isn't the only movie about Tolkien in the works. Another one, Tolkien & Lewis, will explore the author's relationship with Narnia writer C.S. Lewis and how he helped convert Lewis to Christianity.

Former New Line bosses Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne are producing Middle Earth. They are the ones who greenlit Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which ended up being a huge success.

In other news about Tolkien, his Beren and Luthien book will be published in 2017, 100 years after he wrote it.

Additionally, Jackson and a team of Lord of the Rings veterans are getting together to make a movie based on the sci-fi/fantasy book Mortal Engines.

This story has been updated.