Hobbit Movie Update
Published on: 11th November, 2009
Hobbit Movie Update | Related News
Guillermo Del Toro will be finding himself a part in The Hobbit movie. He confessed to a German TV show that he plans to have a cameo playing a creature and unlike Peter Jackson who did the same in all 3 Lord of the Rings movies, GDT will be giving himself a few lines to deliver.
Meanwhile Sir Ian McKellen - who is fast becoming THE source for Hobbit movie news - told Sci-Fi Wire that he has seen the script and although very excited he cannot say anything as he is sworn to secrecy. Sounds like GDT is catching on fast and reeling him in a bit 
“There are a lot of characters in The Hobbit including, crucially, Bilbo, and they don’t know who’s going to play Bilbo. So it’s extremely attractive that this part has been written for me. The other Gandalf [LOTR] was written for, well, just as Gandalf.”
[This contradicts his previous statement that he knew who had the bilbo Baggins role.]
“There’s lots for me to enjoy, in all sorts of ways. And I couldn’t be happier. But I’m sworn to secrecy. I’m not to say anything at all about the script.”
Viggo Mortensen meanwhile has expressed an interest in returning for the second Hobbit movie.
He told Movieweb that he had a lot of fun making The Lord of the Rings movies and would love to return to Middle Earth. He also told them that it is his understanding that they [GDT, Jackson and Co] were trying to incorporate actors from the trilogy, even some who’s character didn’t appear in The Hobbit.
John Rhys-Davies only last month said he had been approached but had said ‘no thanks’ to a return to Middle Earth as has Christopher Lee.
John Noble who played Denethor has already said no some time ago which could be a problem if they plan to show the story of Aragorn.
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Latest Hobbit Forum Chat
- New topic "Good news?" by Iain)wgtn0128 on March 14, 2010 at 6:03 pm in The Hobbit Movies
- Reply on "Casting" by Gorgoroth on March 14, 2010 at 4:53 pm in The Hobbit Movies
- Reply on "Lets talk directors vision" by Gandalfs Beard on March 14, 2010 at 2:40 pm in The Hobbit Movies
- Reply on "Batman" by Gandalfs Beard on March 14, 2010 at 2:35 pm in Other Fantasy Stories
- Reply on "Lets talk directors vision" by Aule on March 14, 2010 at 2:19 pm in The Hobbit Movies
I can’t wait for the movie!
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how can any of the previous actors say NO to returning for another movie or two?? seriously. wtf is wrong with some people.
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watchtheextras Reply:
November 26th, 2009 at 12:51 am
@and MY axe, If you’ve seen how much John Rhys-Davies “loves” wearing his makeup, then you’ll understand why and chuckle.
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Dude, you have to think about the people, not your (our) selfish desires. C Lee is getting too old and can’t travel as well as he once could from what I understand and Rhys-Davies is ALLERGIC to the prosthetics. Didn’t you watch the appendices to see how badly he responded to the makeup? Ouch. I don’t blame him. He’s a GREAT sport for not backing out in the first place.Though I’d LOVE to see Gimli in the Hobbit.
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str Reply:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:51 pm
@Ash,
I would hate to see Gimli in The Hobbit as he doesn’t belong in there. But JRD could have played another dwarf, maybe even Gimili’s father.
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And John Noble quite rightly says he couldn’t just walk out on Fringe and drop everyone in it.
You have to remember its over a decade since these actors were last involved. Waiting this long to make The Hobbit was always going to cause this type of problem.
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str Reply:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:54 pm
@ady,
Though it’s not really a problem as very few of the LOTR characters appear in The Hobbit as a book or could appear in the expanded form of the film. Let’s see, there’s Gandalf, Bilbo, Elrond and (for the film) Saruman, Galadriel and the Nazgul.
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!!!Aragorn’s story in the hobbit movie?? Why?!?! he is NOT in the book! if you put in bits about aragorn, you have to leave out things that belong from the book!!!
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str Reply:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:55 pm
@Matt,
I agree that it wouldn’t work. Aragorn has just been born during the time the Hobbit is set. He could only appear in a bridge film.
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None of those characters are in the book, so I don’t see why they were even approached. Of course, Sir Ian McKellen and Hugo Weaving are the only actors crucial to The Hobbit that would need to return.
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why not have viggo mortensen play Bard of Laketown? Also, i sure hope they include the charactor of Beorn. i thought LOTR should have included Tom Bombadil, and to omit Beorn from the hobbit would be a great injustice to the story.
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evenstar Reply:
November 25th, 2009 at 1:58 am
tom bombadil was a great character and i like that little story, but he wasn’t essential to the plot. that bit kinda tied in with frodo selling the house under the hill and ‘moving’, but i dont think the story suffered. i agree about Beorn, however. they couldn’t leave him out, but that means they probably will.
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I want the movie just like the book! Beorn was one of my favorite characters so I hope they don’t leave him out. As for adding characters that weren’t in the book, that’s bullshit!
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But u have to understand that its based on the book not the book it self they have to make sum cuts thats best for the film.
But i do hope they don’t make to many changes cuz i really enjoyed reading the hobbit (red that b4 LOTR)
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Clay says: “why not have viggo mortensen play Bard of Laketown?”
Why when Guillermo Del Toro could play it instead!? Honestly the more I read about these films the more I think the film-makers should have just left it alone. It’s like awaiting the second season of a TV show with the principals replaced as if nobody will notice.
S’all about the money. Mr T, who already is, will be spinning slightly faster in his grave. I often wonder how long he as a writer contemplated the end of the One Ring… in his epic work. Must have been a while, right? Mulling over and over the possibilities until eventually deciding that Gollum should “fall” and the One Ring with him.
Bring in the film-makers who who attempt the same ‘mulling’ and they, after ‘not’ writing an epic, decide against the guy who did’s decision. Meh. I loved, and still love the visual treat of the three movies, but seriously, as a fan the word I use more often is…
… fail! When it comes to story! And it’ll be a ‘epic fail’ if they can’t keep the visuals consistent, or principal characters consistent… what exactly can they do… really? If they can’t do that? What do they have?
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str Reply:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:59 pm
@Jon,
It is not a second season and no principals are left out since hardly any principals appear in both books.
What are you talking about - Gollum falls with the ring in the films too, with only a few details changed!
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Sarah Reply:
February 12th, 2010 at 2:52 pm
@str, I think s/he knows it’s not a second season, you can’t exactly lose the principals eveybody knows as their characters *before* a first season can you?
If any of the characters appearing in a prequel were present in LotR, it stands to reason you have the same cast. If it didn’t, why are we getting reports of actors saying no? Somebody is asking them.
The Gollum thing. If I was a Middle-Earth law-enforcer I’d charge Frodo with manslaughter, Gollum fell due to a struggle, he didn’t just fall the eucatastrohic way. >.<
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str Reply:
February 13th, 2010 at 9:24 am
@Sarah,
Then good that Middle-Earth has no such overzealous law-enforcers. Frodo did not push Gollum in the book and I think your view that pushing in an attempt to retrieve stolen goods is akin to manslaughter very strange.
As for the characters some appear in the Hobbit but most simply do not. But actors can play different roles too while identicals roles cane be played by others as well.
Does everyone realize there will be two Hobbit movies? The first movie will be based on the book and the second movie is what happens between the end of the Hobbit and the beginning of LOTR - which is about a 60 year period. So the second movie is open (never written by Tolkien) to link the Hobbit & LOTR. I think the director & Peter Jackson can come up with a great story/movie for this 60 year period. And most of the characters in LOTR could appear in the 2nd Hobbit movie because most were around/alive during the 60 years between (including Aragon and even Frodo, etc).
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The Hobbit Reply:
December 18th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
@beth
The Hobbit is to be made in 2 movies and the so called bridging movie idea has been shelved.
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Brian Cox as Thorin is a perfect match I think.
Ron Perlman for Beorn…?
Smaug… a tough one. A precise voice that speaks the Queen’s english perfectly; Ralph Fiennes, Jeremy Irons or indeed Alan Rickman.
It would be a cool ending to the movies (assuming no 3rd filler movie) if the scene moved on just before the War Of The Ring, and we see The Black Rider Messenger seeking news of a trifle that Sauron fancies…
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I like the idea of Jeremy Irons as Smaug. As for including Aragorn in The Hobbit then I vote “No”. He is not in the book so why on earth have him in the movie; makes no sense unless it is a strategy to have Viggo involved to try and sell more merchandise, etc.
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I really hope Viggo is in the movie. He was a fantastic actor
del toro should not be in it. I don’t like him. He has commitment issues and sounds kinda stuck up.
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str Reply:
February 11th, 2010 at 12:07 am
@Elrohir,
give him a break, it will be a cameo. It cannot be worse than Peter Jackson eating a carrot.
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Elrohir Reply:
February 11th, 2010 at 1:44 am
@str, i suppose not. but still, i am kinda psycho, so i do not like del toro. i have way too high standards. dunno why.
nic comparison though
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wish christopher lee would have returned, would have loved to see saruman when he was gandalfs wise friend and not saurons puppet, and he is also a brilliant actor. but he was disapointed when he was cut out of the 3rd lotr film completly so cant say i blame him
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str Reply:
February 11th, 2010 at 12:05 am
@Vega,
I would have loved to see him again too. The role of Saruman will be very hard to play, as he must be credible in two ways:
-swaying his fellow characters his way, even Gandalf, while already hinting at his ulterior motives
-convincing the audience, that already knows him as a bad guy, that he is a good guy after all
C.L. would have been up to the task, but who else is?
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@str
I can’t reply to your reply for some reason. So you likely won’t get an email to lead you back here. I’ll stick it down here.
Look up manslaughter and apply Frodo’s frame of mind in the movie to the struggle leading to the death of Gollum. Did it look like Gollum was going to fall as he danced in the movie? No. Did the struggle lead to his falling? Yes.
I didn’t imply that Frodo pushed Gollum in the book, not sure why you thought that. I mentioned eucatastrophe for a reason.
Gollum *falls* in the book. Nobody’s fault, no struggle beforehand, no snarling Frodo. If I had a back and forth with you over these comments and you eventually fell off your chair - you could blame me for your getting pent up. lol
Frodo’s actions led to Gollum falling. At what point is that anything like the book?
Then let’s get into a prequel to LotR with principals being asked to return. You’re saying they don’t appear before LotR in the books, yet actors are being asked to reprise roles.
You getting the gist here yet? They’re not exactly following the rules. The franchise has moved on and the IP isn’t so well guarded as it used to be. It’s in the hands of Hollywood now. Woe unto the setting.
Ta, ta! o.O
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Back for one last dance
- I think The Hobbit will be a cool movie. I just think it’d blow to attempt a canny prequel after The Hobbit with half the cast missing. =P
Milking the cash cow. >.<
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