Filmmaker Peter Jackson has confirmed that the long-awaited sequel to 2011’s The Adventures of Tintin will be his next directorial project. This marks his official return to narrative feature filmmaking after a 12-year hiatus. Jackson made the announcement at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain, where he received the 2026 Honorary Grand Prize.
This update advances a project that has remained in pre-production for over a decade. Steven Spielberg directed the original motion-capture adventure film, and Jackson and Kathleen Kennedy produced it. Under the original arrangement between the two directors, Spielberg helmed the first installment. Jackson was always planned to take over the director’s chair for the sequel while Spielberg transitioned to producing.
Peter Jackson Returns to Narrative Filmmaking
Jackson’s last narrative feature film was The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in 2014. Since then, he has focused on archival documentary projects. These include the World War I feature They Shall Not Grow Old in 2018 and the documentary miniseries The Beatles: Get Back in 2021.
Speaking to festival attendees, Jackson outlined the status of several high-profile projects. He remains involved in Middle-earth franchise developments, noting that The Hunt for Gollum has about two weeks of filming remaining, and The Shadow of the Past is still in the scriptwriting phase. However, he emphasized that Tintin 2 is next on his directing slate.
“We’ve also already written the script for Tintin 2, the second Tintin film. That will be the next film I make,” Jackson stated during his festival appearance.
A Long Development Road for the Tintin Sequel
Progress on a follow-up to The Adventures of Tintin has moved slowly since the first film debuted to a strong global response. The original adaptation grossed $374 million worldwide, won the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film, and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Score, despite a modest domestic box office performance of $77 million.
Earlier this year at the Cannes Film Festival, Jackson noted that he had been working on the screenplay with his longtime creative partner Fran Walsh. While the studio has not confirmed specific plot points or source material, industry speculation points toward classic Hergé adventures like The Seven Crystal Balls and Prisoners of the Sun as likely inspirations.
Production timelines and official release dates for Tintin 2 remain unannounced. Still, the completed screenplay and Jackson’s confirmation position the animated sequel to finally move forward into active physical production.
