Annecy Sets ‘Lord of the Rings’ Anime Movie, DC’s ‘Creature Commandos’

The new Lord of the Rings anime movie and the first DC Universe title from James Gunn are among the Warner Bros. projects that will be highlighted during the Annecy International Animation Film Festival that takes place next month.

Warner Bros. Animation, Cartoon Network Studios and Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe shared their plans Monday for the annual animation fest held June 9-15 in Annecy, France.

Among the planned events include Andy Serkis hosting a filmmaker conversation and extended look at The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, the anime feature that hails from New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Animation. Director Kenji Kamiyama and producers Philippa Boyens, Joseph Chou and Jason DeMarco will take part in the discussion and present the first footage from the movie that Warner Bros. is set to release theatrically on Dec. 13.

The animation process is currently underway for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, which centers on the fortress of Helm’s Deep and its founder, Helm Hammerhand, the King of Rohan. (Images from the project can be seen above and below.) Last week, Warner Bros. announced that a live-action Lord of the Rings film from director Serkis is in early development and eyeing a 2026 release.

Other programming highlights at Annecy from the studio include a making-of session for Creature Commandos, which marks the first DC Studios project from bosses Gunn and Peter Safran. Gunn serves as executive producer and writer for the Max animated series that hails from DC Studios and Warner Bros. Animation and does not yet have a premiere date.

At the Annecy presentation, Creature Commandos supervising producer Rick Morales and supervising director Balak Yves will share an in-depth look at the artistic process behind the series that focuses on Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) forming a military group comprised of monstrous villains.

Also set for Annecy is a panel sharing an inside look at the return of the Cartoon Network series The Amazing World of Gumball, in addition to a world-premiere screening of the forthcoming animated feature The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie.