The Lord of the Rings begins to take shape in first trailer for J.R.R. Tolkien biopic

When it comes to influential fantasy writers, J.R.R. Tolkien always falls on or near the top of the list. As such, it was only a matter of time until Hollywood decided to make a biopic about his life and the creation of the sprawling Lord of the Rings universe.

Today, we received the first trailer for Tolkien, which stars Nicholas Hoult (young Hank McCoy/Beast in the X-Men films) as the famous British author. While only a minute long, the teaser is packed with a look at Tolkien's time spent fighting in World War I, his relationship with his wife, Edith Bratt (played by Lily Collins), and, of course, the creation of Middle-earth.

Watch the trailer below:

After the massive success of the Rings and Hobbit movies from Peter Jackson (forget that the last two Hobbit installments were just meh), as well as the upcoming Rings adaptation on Amazon, it really is the perfect time to tell Tolkien's personal story of how it all came together.

Directed by Finnish filmmaker Dome Karukoski (Tom of Finland), Tolkien co-stars Tom Glynn-Carney (Dunkirk), Anthony Boyle (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), Patrick Gibson (The Darkest Minds), Colm Meaney (The Devil's Hand), Genevieve O'Reilly (The Snowman), Craig Roberts (Red Oaks), Derek Jacobi (Tomb Raider), and Pam Ferris (Holmes & Watson).

Tolkien rides into theaters May 10. Before then, take a look at some high-res stills from the film in the photo gallery below.