Another day in Middle Earth, another Hobbit movie rumor. This latest one sees David Tennant yet again being linked with the part of Bilbo Baggins.
Follow the logic that’s giving rise to the rumor and see where you end up…
David Tennant made the news early yesterday for withdrawing his services from one of the leading roles in the movie Burke and Hare.
It then came to light that he was being replaced by Andy Serkis.
Simon Pegg then posts the following twitter:
“David Tennant had to drop out of B&H (Burke and Hare) but by sheer glorious serendipity a legend of Middle Earth and Skull Island has come aboard. Welcome AS (Andy Serkis)”
A bit vague I know but you can see why the rumor is probably going to gather pace through tomorrow and the weekend.
I was hanging fire with the story but then it came to light that Simon Pegg fairly quickly deleted the post from his Twitter account.
This fanned the flames rather than put out the burning embers. Was Pegg trying to be cryptic but not cryptic enough for Tennant’s liking?
TotalFilm were quick off the mark to raise the point that Tennant is at a point in his career that makes his walking away from a big movie like Burke and Hare at such a late stage a strange decision.
The point being that you really don’t want to be upsetting people in Hollywood unless of course you are walking away because you have been offered a far bigger part.
The first rumor about Tennant getting the Bilbo Baggins role surfaced back in July when it was announced he was quitting Dr. Who and also attending Comic-Con, as was Peter Jackson. An announcement was expected at the expo and then promptly failed to materialise.
Lets see how long this latest one runs for. I must admit I give more weight to this rumor than the earlier Tobey Maguire – Bilbo Baggins story. David Tennant being English British and a bit more Hobbit looking, it seems more feasible.
If its true then Simon Pegg is not going to be very popular down in New Zealand.
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{ 40 comments… read them below or add one }
I sure hope this is rubbish. I like David Tennant but he is far too quirky to play Bilbo. He also doesnt have the bone structure at all. He’s way too skinny! If this rumor get’s shot down like the rest, then I am banking on Martin Freeman. Anyone else and I will be sorely dissapointed in this movie. With all the other rumors going down in flames, Martin Freeman is absolutely perfect! FREEMAN FTW!
Martin Freeman? I’d have to disagree with you there, mate.
@Garanid, Umm… seriously, leave the dalak at home.
@G.K, i think that although david tennant is possibly the best actor ever, he wouldnt be able to play the part as well as others. tbh why dont they get the guy who did it in tlotr to do it again..
@bleh, The reason they can’t do that is because during the Hobbit Bilbo is much younger, almost about the age Frodo is during TLOTR.
I approve. I’ve seen Tennant work and he’s freaking brilliant. Funny, nice accent, hobbit like. Yes. Much better han McGuire.
David Tennant is not English. He’s Scottish. Please learn the difference.
@wm, Being a Manx Celt I’m fully aware of the differences thanks very much. I meant he can play English as in he soon dropped the accent for the Dr. Who part.
David Tennant would be a far better choice for Bilbo than Tobey. He is a great actor and looks half way to hobbit already – stop hiding those big hairy feet, David!
When the Tennant rumour originally broke, I thought he had the Accent and the Chops to pull the role off, but not similar looking enough to Holm for purposes of continuity.
However, I am such a big fan of his Dr Who (he and Eccleston are probably my faves next to Tom Baker), that I could get over that pretty quick. He can certainly spin from Zany Humour to Drama on a dime.
What about Simon Pegg as Bilbo? He know’s Jackson from Hot-Fuzz and it hobbity…
I love David Tennant & have read the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings more times then I can count! I would enjoy seeing Tennant play Bilbo, I think he is a talented actor and would do a wonderful job in the role!
I think that he should totaly be suitable for “The Hobbit” movie, he “can be” bilbo if using a mask (what John Rhys-Davies used to play Gimli) and he will fit for a hobbit because he is thin and when they shrink him down a bit, he going to look beauteful!
Not as Tobey Maguire (spiderman). I dont like him he do not fit in the hobbit movie, its like but Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) as him, me not like.Thanks!
@Julius, I totally agree. They’ll have him in prostetics for the ears and feet anyways, what’s a few extra? One on the nose to get it right, and we may have our selfves a well to do young hobbit.
How many times has this rumour come up, and how many times has it been dismissed? My feeling is that since Tenant hasn’t been confirmed yet and PJ said in response to the Tobey Maguire rumour that they were still a month or two away from a decision, this rumour is just that – a rumour, and nothing more.
David Tennant is not English he is Scottish.
I think its Soo nice to see Andy Serkis in middle earth, that means a better gollum for ex!
Tennant is farrr too skinny, and farrrrr too young to play Bilbo. However, in saying that, so was Wood – in both cases, but I can’t read Lord of the Rings now without seeing him as Frodo. It worked.
With a pinch of artistic license, I think Tennant would make a superb Bilbo.
This might sound dumb, but I know exactly who will play Bilbo Baggins. And this person is not at all in the age range of the actors you’re all considering. In fact, this man is nearly 80 years old. And I’m sure most of you have heard of him and would easily recognize him.
Bilbo Baggins will played by none other than the amazing Ian Holm, the actor who originated the part in Lord of the Rings. My source at WETA Digital, who will remain unnamed, confirmed this. But if you check out the Q&A Peter Jackson and James Cameron at did at CC International, you can begin to connect the dots.
Jackson and Cameron both use WETA Digital in their films. It was WETA, along with AS, who created the amazing digital character of Gollum back in 2002 for TTT. And it was when Cameron saw this, he knew he could finally make Avatar. Anyway these are men who like to push the boundaries of digital effects and film making techniques and they seem to keep in contact.
If you read the interview (links at bottom), Cameron continuously praises Jackson and his film trilogy. Towards the end, he begins to talk a great deal about the digital technology they both employ in their movies. And one of the points he makes that he really tries to push home is how with this new tech, we can actually de-age actors.
He gives the example of Clint Eastwood playing Dirty Harry again and looking exactly like he did in the 70s, but it is his performance and his voice driving the character.
Is this just a coincidence that this is one of the big things on James Cameron’s mind whilst chatting with the Hobbit producer? Don’t you think James would have the inside track on his favorite effects shops next project? Was Cameron so excited by this possibility that he couldn’t keep it to himself? Maybe he already knows the first time we can see this technique in practice.
Read the interview mentioned above by clicking here
Listen to it by clicking here
@Devon,
I agree that it should be played by none other than Iam Holms himself. He was so closely associated with LotR for so long it would be a travesty to not have him back. Though if Ian was not available I could be happy with Tennant myself.
As for the de-aging effects at Weta, the tech can be seen in the new Tron trailer where Jeff Bridges is a much younger and unwrinkled character as he was back in the early 80′s for “Clu” (Flynn’s alter ego program who is played by Bridges).
With this evidence, I would be surprised if they didn’t cast Ian back into the role. Regardless of his age, he still needs to be in this film because for continuities sake he should be there.
@Devon, Wont happen m8 .The film is being directed by Del toro who doesnt use much cgi at all look at pans labarenth and even hellboy 2 all of it is puppets and atronix And in the end he will be in the driving seat for the hobbit .weta saves them a fortune to give the Pj feel to it so it isnt alien to lotr ,such as old props and clothes ,all the swords made by the weaponsmiths elven ,dwarven, etc and the designs they used such as the axes being a-symetrical and elven blades looking like leaves leaving a much larger portion of the larger budget for other things .lotr took so long because they hand made real swords and armour for 300 strong cast and extras its all still in weta warehouse.As for Tennant assuming the role remember he wasn’t just Dr Who he played a villan in H Potter(Boo) and is a gifted stage actor pro enough to put on weight for a role and build huge muscles if he was cast in 300 like any other pro actor .
@Devon, Umm, i dont think that ian holm will be playing bilbo becuase didn’t he say that the physical demands of the job and the necessary relocation to n.z he won’t be playing bilbo??
Wow, are you sure? I thought he was supposed to look younger but perhaps not. I just remembered in the movie he looked about the same age as later. But seriously, Spiderman=Bilbo? I do not think so…
I think this could be avery clver ploy and Simon Pegg is getting the part, he is easily as good an actor as Tennant, if not better.
This guy as Bilbo would be a disaster, I’ve tried to watch Dr. Who on netflix and this guy was the goofiest, worst actor. I couldn’t watch more than 4 minutes of any given episode because of him. At least Tobey can keep it low-key and subtle, and let the environment make the movie, this guy could play golum maybe(not as well as Andy anyway), not Bilbo.
@mike, if you’ve only seen 4 minutes of a Doctor Who episode then you definitely haven’t seen David’s full acting ability. 4 minutes isn’t enough to judge ANY actor. He’s been in other roles before (not just Doctor Who) and he can play a very serious character. For you to say he would be a “disaster” as Bilbo is a bit harsh, considering you don’t even know his acting ability.
plz not david tennant plzzzzzz he stopped me watching dr who, total overactor u may as well get jim carey to play bilbo….ian holm wood be best choice but too old i fear……
I read the post, but I didn’t see anything liking David Tennant to Bilbo Baggins in any way, shape or form.
If the makers of the Hobbit followed the story as set out by Tolkien there would be no need for CGI to make Ian Holm look younger. As Tolkien wrote in the fellowship of the ring through words spoken by Gandalf ”A mortal… Who keeps one of the one rings does not die, but he does not grow or obtain more life, he merely continues, untill at last every minute is weariness… As for his long life Bilbo never connected it with the ring at all… Though he was getting restless and uneasy. Thin and stretched he said. A sign that the ring was getting control.” What Tolkien is saying is that mortals who possess rings of power do not age. They remain the same and eventually fade but this process takes many hundreds of years and depends on other factors such as how the bearer came by the ring, wether he or she used it for good or evil, how often it was used and so on. This is how the nine lords of men who were given rings of power by sauron eventually faded and became the ring wraiths, the Nazgul. Therefore Bilbo would look exactly the same in the hobbit when he first finds the ring as he does in Jacksons first movie when he gives it up and it passes to Frodo. Tolkien makes exactly the same point on the very first page of lord of the rings ”there was also his (Bilbo’s) prolonged vigour to marvel at. Time wore on but it seemed to have little effect on Mr Baggins. At ninety he was much the same as at fifty. At 99 they began to call him well preserved but unchanged would have been nearer the mark”. Jackson has created a bit of problem for by showing bilbo finding the ring in a flashback scene in the fellowship of the ring. In that scene Bilbo is shown looking younger with brown hair rather than grey. This was understandable because Jackson wanted to show that a lot of time had passed since Bilbo found the ring and knew that some viewers would not have read the books and would think that it had only just happened if Bilbo looked the same. I rate David Tennant and i am sure he would do an excellent job (although i think michael sheen would be better if a younger actor is to be chosen because of his ability to morph into other personalities. He could play the part as a young Ian Holm and has the acting skill to add his own emotion). My first choice though would be Ian Holm. He will bring quality, depth and continuity and is by far the most qualified due to his portrayal of Frodo in the excellent BBC radio dramatisation of LOTR’S and his equally impressive portrayal of Bilbo in Jacksons trilogy. If Holm is unavailable or doesn’t want to do it then my second choice would be Derek Jacobi. Another excellent actor in the mould of Holm.
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If only David Jason was 20 years younger – he would be great for the role.
I Martin Freeman would be an excellent choice based on his look (check out this link comparison I did with him and Ian Holm):
http://img97.imageshack.us/i/bilbob.jpg
I don’t know anything else about his acting… I see here that he’s Scottish, but it’s an accent, people. They’re actors,… they can another accent. Plus, when you’re around a lot of other English actors, the accent rubs off. It took no time living in New York to completely drop my southern drawl and affect mine into more northern… all without TRYING to.
This guy could do it, I think. He’s got a rounder face that I like. Really like Sean Astin because of his acting, but he looked like a hobbit.
the thing is, im POSITIVE that Tennant would be fantastic as Bilbo, he can play a massive range of acting styles, but, if you just look at him, and compare him please with Sir Ian Holm: the jawline, ears, nose, eyeshape, browline and hair structure of Tennant are at a push, VERY close to the original Bilbo’s. Im certainly sceptical of this rumour, but my Lord i hope it’s true.
While both Tobey McGuire and David Tenant would be great in the role of Bilbo, I think that Welsh actor Ioan Griffudd (Fantastic Four, Amazing Grace, Solomon and Gaenor, Horatio Hornblower) would be ideal as Bilbo – great actor and capable of many different types of roles.
Come on! Just give the roll to David. He is perfect for Bilbo
I think The person who gets bilbo needs to be somebody who is not well known
If Ian Holm is discounted, then Martin Freeman, Simon Pegg or – not mentioned until now – John Simm (Sam tyler in Life on Mars, The Master etc.) Bilbo is a solid, slightly pompous, comic character, not flighty like David Tennant (good actor though he is). Problem is that they will have to cast someone who little girls will have crushes on, like Elijah Wood, in order to attract te fans – particularly as there willl be a dearth of elves and men!
true that bilbo is alot younger… although the ring was suppose to make him age proper slow, and they cant half pull out some tricks in make up these days. i reckon Ian Holm would be a good shout for keeping the role really
What about John Simm? What’s his work schedule now?
Colm Meaney would be a great hobbit! He could easily play Bilbo. As far as David Tennant is concerned, he is a FANTASTIC actor, though I don’t picture him as Bilbo, I am sure he could carry it off and do it smashingly! I’m not sure about John Simm…he is wonderful though!
@Túrin, i know but they need to get someone who looks at least a bit like him so david tennant probably wouldnt be the best idea…