During a recent appearance at Scotland’s Wigtown Book Festival, Outlander star Sam Heughan strongly suggested that he may have a role in the upcoming film The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. The topic of J. R. R. Tolkien’s saga arose during the festival, a subject particularly relevant to Heughan given his given name and his brother Cirdan’s Elvish namesake.
When the moderator questioned if the Lord of the Rings film franchise was "exhausted," Heughan responded cryptically, "No, it's not exhausted. I'm not giving anything away, but I may have been in New Zealand recently." Heughan’s remarks followed the announcement that filming for The Hunt for Gollum is underway in New Zealand, with Andy Serkis directing.
Further fueling speculation, an Outlander fan account noted that a rare edition of The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, signed by individuals involved with bringing his work to screen, included a signature from Sam Heughan alongside other cast and producers of The Hunt for Gollum, with their film roles listed. While Heughan could have been visiting the set as a fan, the confluence of his comments and the auction item suggests a potential, as yet undisclosed, role in the film.