Legendary Move: Tolkien Estate Partners With Curtis Brown Heritage for Epic Global Representation 2025
Few literary estates in the world are as distinguished as that of J.R.R. Tolkien. To say that his Middle-earth legendarium was unprecedented in its world-building would be a serious understatement: he wrote so extensively to flesh out his fantasy world that nearly two dozen posthumous lore compilations – and counting – have been published in the half-century since his death. Now, his estate will be represented by a British literary agency no less venerable and accomplished.
A Grand Old Name in the Arts
Curtis Brown is a London-based agency representing creators across the arts – in film and television as well as literature. However, visual media were barely in existence at the time of the agency’s inception: it was founded in 1899 by Albert Curtis Brown, an American journalist who served as the London correspondent for a New York paper and found himself representing writers in both Europe and America.
In its long history, Brown has represented many authors of diverse nationalities, including A.A. Milne, Ian Fleming, Margaret Atwood, and Walter Isaacson, as well as an equally extensive number of actors and screenwriters. J.R.R. Tolkien was never affiliated with this agency during his lifetime (1892-1973), but now, 52 years after his passing, it is poised to play a crucial role in preserving and honoring his legacy.
An Auspicious New Partnership
On September 10, Curtis Brown Heritage, a division established in 2016 with the specific purpose of managing the estates of major 20th-century authors, announced that Tolkien is slated to become the latest such author. The head of this division, Norah Perkins, was quoted as saying: “It is a great honour and a joy to be working with the Tolkien Estate to preserve and celebrate J.R.R. Tolkien’s extraordinary literary legacy, and to help to bring new readers (and viewers and listeners) to his writing. I am thrilled to be joining the Estate on the next part of the journey.”
The Tolkien Estate was founded in 1996 by Tolkien’s son Christopher, who was responsible for editing the majority of his father’s posthumous publications. He resigned as the Estate’s director in 2017 but remained has his father’s literary executor until his death in 2020. The Tolkien estate has remained under the management of Tolkien’s living family, including his daughter-in-law Baillie Tolkien and grandson Simon Tolkien.
Reportedly, the Tolkien Estate couldn’t be more pleased to have partnered with Curtis Brown Heritage. They’ve released the following statement: “As a family, we remain deeply conscious of the responsibility of looking after Tolkien’s literary works and legacy. We are committed to keeping his stories alive for generations to come. In Curtis Brown Heritage we have found partners who share that passion, and we are delighted to be working with them.”
Final Thoughts
Certainly, the properties of J.R.R. Tolkien are a gift that keeps on giving, and not simply through the enduring popularity of the original classic novels. A book entitled The Bovadium Fragments: Together with the Origin of Bovadium is slated for publication in October of this year; it’s yet another work written by the writer and edited by Christopher, and has been described as a parable that satirizes industrialization (also a prominent theme in The Lord of the Rings).
The fact that some of the author’s literary output remains unpublished in 2025 is a testament to the staggering extent of his oeuvre. Moreover, with yet more big-budget Middle-earth adaptations soon to grace the small and silver screens alike, his legacy isn’t likely to fade anytime soon. With its own history no less eminent and prodigious, Curtis Brown seems more than up to the responsibility of representing that legacy in these promising years to come.
