The Hobbit is Truly Official...

[Curubethion]

http://hollywoodinsider.ew.com/2007/12/its-back-to-mid.html

And there's dozens more links, if you google "The Hobbit movie".

This is awesome news.

[Jon S.]

Here's one of the articles. Awesome news!!! :D

Media & Marketing: New Line and Director Settle 'Rings' Suit, Look to 'Hobbit'
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Publication date: 2007-12-19

After more than two years of acrimonious litigation over profits from the " Lord of the Rings" franchise, filmmaker Peter Jackson and studio New Line Cinema have settled the lawsuit and agreed to return again to Middle-earth for a two- movie installment based on J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit."

The settlement, for an undisclosed amount, comes at an important juncture for New Line, which has struggled to establish new franchises that can fill the void left by its successful "Rings" franchise. News of the agreement comes on the heels of the disappointing U.S. box-office performance of "The Golden Compass," New Line's latest attempt at franchise gold. In its first 10 days, the film -- which cost as much as $180 million to make -- has brought in only $42 million domestically.

The studio, a unit of Time Warner Inc., was hoping "The Golden Compass," the first installment of British author Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy, would be the beginning of another blockbuster series of films akin to " Lord of the Rings." "Rings" grossed almost $3 billion world-wide.

Now, with the tepid domestic performance of "Compass," New Line co-heads Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne say no decision has been made about a sequel, which was once considered a near certainty.

"The jury is still very much out on the movie, and while it's performed very strong overseas we'll look at it early next year and see where we're going with [a sequel]," says Mr. Lynne, co-chairman and co-chief executive. Outside the U.S., the film has grossed $51 million over 10 days, according to Box Office Mojo LLC, which tracks ticket sales.

Messrs. Lynne and Shaye say the timing of the "Hobbit" news, less than two weeks after "The Golden Compass" release, was coincidental.

"From the moment 'Return of the King' came out, we knew we wanted to do 'The Hobbit,'" says Mr. Shaye, referring to the third movie in the "Rings" series. " We then had disagreements on various fronts, but at the time, 'Golden Compass' was truly only a twinkle in our eye."

Re-enter Mr. Jackson, 46 years old, and his wife and producing partner, Fran Walsh. The New Zealand filmmaker in June 2005 sued New Line, which produced the "Rings" movies. He alleged that through accounting tactics, the studio deprived him of a share of the profits. New Line disputed the accusations.

The thaw between Mr. Jackson and New Line began about a year ago. Mr. Jackson laid out his vision for the two "Hobbit" movies during a dinner at the home of Harry Sloan, chairman and chief executive of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., which owns international distribution rights to "The Hobbit." Ms. Walsh and Mr. Jackson's manager, Ken Kamins, were also at the dinner, according to Mr. Sloan. "His vision was so spectacular that we really wanted Bob Shaye to hear it and I asked that they talk," Mr. Sloan says.

A few months later, Messrs. Shaye and Lynne reconnected directly with Mr. Jackson and his associates. From an office at the Cannes film festival in May, the studio heads spoke on the telephone with Mr. Jackson and Ms. Walsh, who were in New Zealand.

It was the first direct conversation between the parties in more than three years, according to Mr. Shaye. Mr. Sloan, whose company has a large financial stake in "The Hobbit," acted as a go-between in the final months of settlement talks, according to the people involved.

With the lawsuit behind them, New Line and MGM say they will make "Hobbit" and a sequel. Mr. Jackson and Ms. Walsh will serve as executive producers with complete creative control, though Mr. Jackson will not direct the two movies as he did the three "Rings" movies. Officials from the studios and Mr. Jackson's camp say the search for a director and a writer for the films will begin in earnest in January.

The studios are hoping to release "The Hobbit" in 2010 and the sequel, untitled for now, the following year.

(END)
Copyright (c) 2007 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

[Gordis]

Horrible, horrible news. PJ again...:eek:

Be preparad to see the Eye of Sauron rolling out of Mirkwood all the way to Barad Dur.
Be prepared for helpless pathetic Bilbo and pathethic Dwarves being saved by Snow-White (Arwen).
Be prepared for Thranduil's Elves beating the Dwarves senseless.
and 13 Dwarves instead of one - 13 times more gut-humor.

:mad:

Will PJ again bring Philippa Boyens into it? She is at the bottom of my list of favorite people, even below PJ himself.

[brownjenkins]

Very cool!

It may not be perfect, but it'll be better than nothing.

And if you don't like the idea, don't go! :D

[Gordis]

"Nothing" is better: when there is nothing there is hope that one day a decent movie will be made.
When there is a bad movie, there is no hope...

[Earniel]

I'd love to see a Hobbit movie being made, but I am experiencing a bit of dread regarding that Hobbit sequel. What on earth are they going to put into it? I wasn't too keen on the inserted scenes in LoTR, so an entire, undefined sequel seems to be just asking for trouble...

[Curubethion]

I'd love to see a Hobbit movie being made, but I am experiencing a bit of dread regarding that Hobbit sequel. What on earth are they going to put into it? I wasn't too keen on the inserted scenes in LoTR, so an entire, undefined sequel seems to be just asking for trouble...
I don't know that it'll be a sequel. I suspect they'll split TH into two parts.

[brownjenkins]

I suppose you could go into some detail about Gandalf and Aragorn's adventures, though it would have to be largely created. I'd think that Númenor and the Last Alliance would be more interesting, if you wanted to delve into that kind of territory, but who knows?

[Earniel]

I don't know that it'll be a sequel. I suspect they'll split TH into two parts.
The news item doesn't seem to be clear on it. "Hobbit and a sequel" doesn't quite sound like a two-parter, but I could be wrong. And why would they have to split the movie? It's not the first time they've made single, long-running films.

I'd prefer a two-parter Hobbit to a single Hobbit movie and an undefined sequel.

[Curubethion]

A longer film would let you develop more stuff, like the White Council. I'd love Saruman shown as the noble leader of the Council...or at least semi-noble, considering that already he'd been tempted by the Ring.

[brownjenkins]

I don't know that it'll be a sequel. I suspect they'll split TH into two parts.

That would make more sense, as they could better tell the entire story. Maybe split it at around when Bilbo defeats the spiders and the Dwarves are dragged off by the wood elves.

[brownjenkins]

"Nothing" is better: when there is nothing there is hope that one day a decent movie will be made.
When there is a bad movie, there is no hope...

That's not exactly true, as PJs are not the first, and probably not the last, attempt at Tolkien's stories.

War of the Worlds, for example, had two versions made a few years back. The "hollywood" one, and another lesser-known version that was very true to the original book, which the older 50s one wasn't either.

There's hope!

[BeardofPants]

"Nothing" is better: when there is nothing there is hope that one day a decent movie will be made.
When there is a bad movie, there is no hope...
Agreed.
I'm a little (okay, a LOT) concerned that he wants to make 2 movies - one based on the Hobbit, and one purely made up to 'fill in the gaps' between the two movie time-frames. Hmm.

[BeardofPants]

I don't know that it'll be a sequel. I suspect they'll split TH into two parts.

Did you even read the first article in this thread?
Apparently not. Here's a direct quote:

Jackson and his life/creative partner Walsh have always envisioned the big-screen adaptation of The Hobbit as two movies. The first would deal with the 80-year old novel. The second, imagined entirely by Jackson and Walsh, would link the conclusion of The Hobbit to the start of the first Lord of the Rings book, The Fellowship of the Ring.

[Jon S.]

Did you folks learn nothing from the LOTR movies? These will be movies "based on" The Hobbit. They will not be "The Hobbit." If you can't let go, you'll only be unhappy again. It's like some of you are masochists that actually want that outcome for yourselves! John Steinbeck wrote, "A journey is like marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it." Same with someone else's movies, seems to me. Just let go and enjoy the show.

[Lady Ravyn]

i have to agree with jon s.

i enjoyed the trilogy of movies because they brought my favorite literature of all time onto the big screen. true, i was a tad.... angered (an understatement) at the changes and inaccuracies that were made, but i eventually swallowed my misgivings because i realized how many more people were brought into tolkien-fandom. i work in a library, and i can't even begin to tell you how many people started checking out the books- people that never would have read them otherwise- because they were inspired to do so by the movies.
i think it's wonderful that now 'the hobbit' will be getting the same attention! it gets the name of "Tolkien" on people's lips! it brings him to the general (and oft-times illiterate) populace! think of the NEW new generation of LotR fans that it will form!

so yeah, having said all this, i'm sure i'll be right here with all the other die-hards ripping them apart and saying what an injustice they did to the book, but i'll never say i wish they didn't make them. i'm glad for the publicity- even if it's not entirely accurate. at least it will inspire people to read the books and find out for themselves how much better the story is as Tolkien intended it.

[The Telcontarion]

Stupid two movie idea. Make the frickin hobbit and that's it. What...he didn't learn from the first movie not to change work of tolkien (atleast he shouldn't).

[Lady Ravyn]

... btw, as soon as i read the good news in my TORN newsletter, this imediate happiness fell over me and i haven't stopped bouncing around ever since.
i'm engaged (in case i hadn't mentioned it before) and i'm getting married in 2010, the same year the hobbit movie's due to come out. so i've already informed my fiancee that if our wedding date coincides with the release date of the movie, we might have a slight problem... he doesn't seem too keen on spending our wedding night at the midnight showing... :confused:

[Lady Ravyn]

Stupid two movie idea. Make the frickin hobbit and that's it. What...he didn't learn from the first movie not to change work of tolkien (atleast he shouldn't).

i agree: two movies is rather ridiculous. the only value that idea could possibly hold is that they'l be able to put more detail into everything.

[Curubethion]

Stupid two movie idea. Make the frickin hobbit and that's it. What...he didn't learn from the first movie not to change work of tolkien (atleast he shouldn't).
If they bring together tLOTR and TH, though, that's not changing the work of Tolkien. It's doing what he never had the chance to do.

[Gordis]

If they bring together tLOTR and TH, though, that's not changing the work of Tolkien. It's doing what he never had the chance to do.

If someone DECENT brought together LOTR and TH and UT and some parts of HOME, it would have been awesome!

But DECENT is the keyword here. PJ is not and will never be. We will get even more of his own stupid additions, ruining the story. And all the characters will be twisted again.:o

[Nurvingiel]

I generally agree with your forbodings about the movie Gordis, but I probably will go see The Hobbit for the pretty scenery factor. (Edit: I'm not just being facetious here: Jackson is gifted at the sweeping scenery shot and New Zealand is lovely.) I know what I'm getting into this time; FotR was a bit of a rude surprise.

I will definitely, definitely be avoiding a completely made up one from Jackson and Walsh. But I'm actually wondering, is that legal? Owning the rights to make a movie out of someone's book is different than the right to directly make new material out of someone else's material.

[Olmer]

Oh, for goodness sake! Give him a credit. Without his brave undertaking of this heavy load, you, people, probably would be living until your gray hair on futile hopes that someday someone will make the book alive.
I agree that the movie is not precisely follows the book's plot, but it has everything essential, and it is dinamic, entertaining and stimulating. How many people went on reading the book after seeing the movie?
And this means that PJ greatly succeed in the task.


Of course, now it's much easier to complain that he was not exactly true to the book. So what? Why not to accept gladly the work, which was produced, unperfectly, but produced for your benefit and entertainment, and just enjoy it as it is.

[BeardofPants]

You know, some of us dislike the movies on their own merits, not cos they sucked donkey's balls as book adaptions, doncha?

[Nurvingiel]

While I wouldn't be lamenting if both Bakshi and Jackson's movies hadn't been made, you do raise a good point here:
Of course, now it's much easier to complain that he was not exactly true to the book. So what? Why not to accept gladly the work, which was produced, unperfectly, but produced for your benefit and entertainment, and just enjoy it as it is.He really did just want to <strike>make a whole lot of money</strike> entertain people. ;)

Okay but seriously, in making the movie he didn't actually ruin the book in any way. Tolkien's works are completely unharmed, so where's the harm right?

But if you'd believe it, I actually don't think LotR is that great as a stand-alone movie (scenery and props excepted). :)

[Jon S.]

I'm happy with my upcoming movies. :)

Sorry 'bout you. :(

P.S. You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need.

[Gordis]

I'm happy with my upcoming movies.
I am glad for you, Jon S. ;)
Happy New Year!

[Jon S.]

Thanks, Gordis. A wonderful, happy, healthy New Year to your family and you as well. As to all on the 'Moot. :)

[Gordis]

Thanks!

And Happy New Year to ALL!

[Black Breathalizer]

I will definitely, definitely be avoiding a completely made up one from Jackson and Walsh. But I'm actually wondering, is that legal? Owning the rights to make a movie out of someone's book is different than the right to directly make new material out of someone else's material.

Haven't you grown up on movie adaptations of novels? If you own the movie rights ANYTHING is fair game. I've seen movies where the only similarity between the book and the movie is the title.

That said, I am thrilled that PJ and Fran will be making the Hobbit movies. They did an AMAZING job of capturing the true spirit of the books in their trilogy.

This announcement was a great day for LOTR fans.

[brownjenkins]

I've seen movies where the only similarity between the book and the movie is the title.

Like Bladerunner, which doesn't even go that far. :D

It was a great movie though.

[Valandil]

Haven't you grown up on movie adaptations of novels? If you own the movie rights ANYTHING is fair game. I've seen movies where the only similarity between the book and the movie is the title.

That said, I am thrilled that PJ and Fran will be making the Hobbit movies. They did an AMAZING job of capturing the true spirit of the books in their trilogy.

This announcement was a great day for LOTR fans.

Breathalizer! Haven't seen YOU in a good stretch of months! Welcome (back?)! :)

[Jon S.]

I would like to make a point - admittedly an obvious one - but first would like to ask: who here has read any of Frank Baum's original book versions of The Wizard of Oz?

P.S. How do you post a pic here anyways (I don't see a pic icon in the "go advanced" menu)?

[Valandil]

When you make posts, there's an "Additional Options" section just below. You'll see an "Attach Files" section with a "Manage Attachments" button.

Try it out! :)

[Black Breathalizer]

Breathalizer! Haven't seen YOU in a good stretch of months! Welcome (back?)! :)

Naw, just passing through. Wanted to see what people were saying about PJ and the Hobbit.

Actually, Valandil, it's been years. I grew weary of the "thought police" behavior of the board's moderators at the time I left.

Take care.

[Valandil]

Months turn into years (which I knew they had). And sorry if you felt that way about things at the time. It's been much more laid back lately, but if you'll recall, there were also a good number of folks around here who REALLY needed active moderating back then. So... it's possible that staff got too pro-active about it.

Hope you'll stay around. :)

[brownjenkins]

I would like to make a point - admittedly an obvious one - but first would like to ask: who here has read any of Frank Baum's original book versions of The Wizard of Oz?

I have!

And good point, I think. ;)

[Earniel]

We've seem to have strayed from the topic now. There are other threads where this sort of conversation is better suited.

Back on topic, please. :)

[sisterandcousinandaunt]

Earniel, where do you want us? I'd like to continue, but I don't know where.

[brownjenkins]

Back on topic, please. :)

Okay!

Many many many people enjoyed PJs movies, LotR newbies and vets alike. So, there is no reason why the same will not be true with his take on The Hobbit.

Think glass half full! :D

[Gordis]

Earniel, where do you want us? I'd like to continue, but I don't know where.

You know, Earniel has big SCISSORS and some glue;) Please, Earniel!:)

[Earniel]

EDIT: Never mind, I seem to have a different sort of tool now that can also split threads.

I have moved the posts concerning the LoTR movies to this thread:What all was wrong with PJ's LoTR (http://entmoot.tolkientrail.com/showthread.php?t=14279) which I think fits your discussion better. (Feel free to PM me if you disagree and we'll work something out.)

[brownjenkins]

EDIT: Never mind, I seem to have a different sort of tool now that can also split threads.

Oh no! Another Val!! :eek:

;) :D

[The Gaffer]

Guillermo del Toro (Pan' Labyrinth) may or may not direct this film:

http://the-hobbit-movie.com/2008/02/04/del-toro-confirms-the-hobbit-movies-are-not-confirmed/

Loved Pan's Labyrinth. He would be excellent I think. Far better director than Jackson on previous form.

[Belwen_of_nargothrond]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080212/ap_on_en_mo/tolkien_lawsuit

I think you all should read this.

[Earniel]

Ouch! That's gonna cost New Line big time. I wonder whether this new money dispute will hinder the filming of the Hobbit.

[Gordis]

Ouch! That's gonna cost New Line big time. I wonder whether this new money dispute will hinder the filming of the Hobbit.

I hope New Line will finally loose the rights to Tolkien production...

[Kennashi]

I hope New Line will finally loose the rights to Tolkien production...Say, Gordis, who WOULD you prefer make the Hobbit?

[Gordis]

I don't know... I am not much of a movie goer.

I only hope it won't be PJ... again. :mad:

I also think a UK director would be better than an American for Tolkien's books: I like British adaptation of classics.

[Telcontar]

I don't think the PJ movies were bad at all. A true to the book movie would've been like a 30 hr movie (including Hobbit). I don't know anyone that would sit around watching a movie that long, except us nerds of course :)

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

True to the book doesn't necessarily equal longer. Not at all. In fact, most of the bad stuff in PJ's movies were the things added in from his own imagination, not the parts of Tolkien that he left out.

[Jon S.]

Enough w/the PJ bashing! Back to the Hobbit movie. Is it progressing at this time or not?!

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

Bashing? We've been polite in this thread. BTW, I've heard no indications that the movie is NOT progressing, so I assume it still is.

[Jon S.]

I was joshing there, m'friend. :)

[hectorberlioz]

Quick debate with the mods in the ether: does this thread go in the "movies" forum or The Hobbit forum?

In any case, I heard from my brother (he is Captain Of Movie News ;) that the producers and the Tolkiens were not agreeing on some things and that production for the movie has paused.

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

Just like the other three movies, I don't think the Tolkien Estate can do anything about whether these movies get made. What then *can* do is deny the rights to produce any Silm, HoME, or UT material. That will leave New Line with The Hobbit and Jackson/Walsh/Boyens' imagination as source material.

[hectorberlioz]

But surely Jackson can't just go around making up new storylines for Middle-Earth...

I've heard that he is developing an "in between" story to take place between The Hobbit and LOTR. Now, in more scholarly hands I would be ok with this. But I thought RotK was a failure in comparison to FotR, and I sort of gave up on him making The Hobbit faithfully. I expect it to be overblown and pompous.

*sigh* :( And The Hobbit is my favorite JRRT book.

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

I'm honestly not sure how it all works from a legal standpoint. All I know is that the movie rights to LotR and The Hobbit were sold. Movie rights to other Tolkien Middle Earth works were not. How much invented material can be added to Hobbit movies in the name of artistic license without infringing on rights? And what if some of that material is pulled from UT or HoME? I don't know the answers to those questions but I would imagine the Tolkien Estate's lawyers do.

[Butterbeer]

you mean Jackson & Jackson and co?


..that'd be a smart move :D

..esp if there were still any lingering resentment with New line over Royalties ... ;)

[Gordis]

I'm honestly not sure how it all works from a legal standpoint. All I know is that the movie rights to LotR and The Hobbit were sold. Movie rights to other Tolkien Middle Earth works were not. How much invented material can be added to Hobbit movies in the name of artistic license without infringing on rights? And what if some of that material is pulled from UT or HoME? I don't know the answers to those questions but I would imagine the Tolkien Estate's lawyers do.

I think if they happen to get any facts from UT and HOME right, they have a legal problem. If they invent ALL of it, they are safe.:D

[hectorberlioz]

My nightmare involves The Hobbit and this "inbetween" story being blown out of proportion. I mean, you'd think they naturally wouldn't go as far as amassing millions of soldiers like they did in RotK.

I want the Hobbit movie to be its own thing, and not merely a prelude to LotR. The Hobbit should have a warmer feel to it, more relaxed. No "this is the final moment" crap. No overwrought melodramatic hodgepodge.

Have I made myself clear yet?:p

[Mari]

Abundantly :rolleyes:
;)

But I do agree with you that the Hobbit, though a prelude to the LotR, should be separate. It's a 'happy' story with a good ending and just not as serious in tone as the LotR and should thus be portrayed.

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

That's not what the producers or director are shooting for. It's going to be a prequel with the very same tone as the other three movies.

"The reality is that we stopped talking the first movie and second movie, and we just started taking about the movie - the two episodes, or two parts, as if they were a single piece of narrative. We don’t even call it the bridge movie, we just call it ‘The Movie.’ And this is great. When we found what reverberated, and we found it in one of our virtual meetings - we understood. It’s a movie.”

“We all agree that if we do our job right, it should all feel like a continuous journey. That’s what we’re striving for,” Del Toro told MTV. “You should see a movie that’s five pictures long. If we do our job right, you put in ‘The Hobbit’ and you wind up watching the entire Pentology!”

[Mari]

Drat.
Ah well. I'll watch it anyway. Gotta have something to complain about, right? :p

[hectorberlioz]

Pentalogy. As if that was the most important thing! Hmph! :mad: More like Satanology, what they're doing :p.

Oh well. Like Mari says, we'll watch it if only to complain about it...

I'm sure they won't get everything wrong.

[Earniel]

"The reality is that we stopped talking the first movie and second movie, and we just started taking about the movie - the two episodes, or two parts, as if they were a single piece of narrative.”
Oh, how that is exactly not what purists like me like to hear. :p I want The Hobbit in one piece, so if the bridge movie sucks too much, I can just forget about it. They better not try to split the story up between two movies.

[hectorberlioz]

I wonder if Christopher Tolkien would like to direct the Hobbit movie himself...

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

I think Christopher Tolkien regrets that his father ever sold the movie rights at all.

[hectorberlioz]

More and more, I find myself with those same sentiments. It's a pretty pathetic world where a cartoon is more faithful to a classic book than the live-action movie.

[Gordis]

Well, Tolkien needed money, so he sold the rights. A good idea would have been to sell them to some trustworthy company, not likely to make a mess out of the adaptation and try to negociate the right to edit the script himself and later transmit this right to Chris... But unfortunately he didn't think of it, it seems. And then the new owner could re-sell the rights as he pleased...

[The Dread Pirate Roberts]

I think the contract the professor signed was a product of the times. Had the rights remained with the Tolkien Estate until the 1990s, the Jackson films would have been quite different and the Tolkiens would have made a lot more money with a lot more input into the process, assuming the films ever got made at all. Selling movie rights to your book today is much different than it was back in the 50s and 60s.

[Mark of Cenla]

I am happy about both movies, and I hope the in the future I will be able to watch all five movies. To each his/her own. Peace and goodwill.

[shesabrandybuck]

Does anyone know what is already Official for the new Hobbit movie? Just some straight up facts?

[frank lampard]

Cant wait for the new movie.Smile dont know who can pull off bilbo the character bar ian holms but it will be interesting to see..

and it will be kinda silly to see ian mckellen looking older as gandalf then he did lord of the rings.. i wonder how they are going to fix that???

[Earniel]

Merged new thread into existing one.

[blogposter12]

Ya man, a bad movie is worse than nothing. at least it's not a waste of time.

[TurinTurambar]

Who knows what they are gonna be like no one can know. However i am curious to see what they add or subtract from the Hobbit. Do you think we will see the iron hills? or better yet will gimli be in the battle of the 5 armies? I believe he is in his 20's when it happens so he could very well be in there. Also do you think they wil include Beorn? Its going to be exciting to see how things turn out. Being that i love the dwarves im very excited to see how an army of them work. It will also be interesting if we see any elves that we know of. I could be wrong but isnt it possible we could see legolas there too?

[Fool_of_a_Took]

I'm interested to see the casting of Thorin and the other Dwarves, as well as how Smaug is portrayed. I hope that he's not overly cga'd. Jackson, Serkis and the WETA workshop really did a phenomenal job with Gollum, I can only hope that someone can step up and do the same for the dragon.

I hope that Beorn is included in a movie of the Hobbit. Because of the length of the LOTR movies a good number of less major (but still great) plot details such as Tom Bombadil and the barrow-wights were left out of the screenplay. As much as I love Tom Bombadil, the barrow-wights would have been very impressive and very creepy on the big screen...

[barrelrider110]

I'm interested to see the casting of Thorin and the other Dwarves, as well as how Smaug is portrayed. I hope that he's not overly cga'd. Jackson, Serkis and the WETA workshop really did a phenomenal job with Gollum, I can only hope that someone can step up and do the same for the dragon.

I hope that Beorn is included in a movie of the Hobbit. Because of the length of the LOTR movies a good number of less major (but still great) plot details such as Tom Bombadil and the barrow-wights were left out of the screenplay. As much as I love Tom Bombadil, the barrow-wights would have been very impressive and very creepy on the big screen...

Yes, Beorn was awesome. And a vegetarian. :D

[barrelrider110]

I like the idea of two movies. If the first is based on the 80 year old novel, then perhaps he will leave well enough alone and stick with the text. After Hobbit II is released I can read what all you mooters have to say and then decide whether or not it's worth my nickel and time. :D

[Valandil]

Does anyone have links for the best sites to get (reliable) updates on The Hobbit movie(s)?

[MatWill]

As far as i know the movie will be released in two parts.

Part 1 will be released in 2012 and part 2 will be released in 2013
It has a huge budget of $300,000,000

The confirmed cast,

* Ian McKellen as Gandalf the Grey
* Andy Serkis as Gollum
* Hugo Weaving as Elrond