Monday, July 7

• Del Toro Talks Hobbit
  

  ReelzChannel.com recently spoke with Hobbit director Guillermo del Toro at the press day for Hellboy II: The Golden Army.
  
  The director is pumped to work on the Lord of the Rings prequels and spoke about the projects with Brent Simon. Check out the full del Toro Hobbit talk right here.
  
  
  
  

  Posted 07/07/2008 by Jeff

  Guillermo del Toro | The Hobbit

Monday, June 23

• Viggo Talks Hobbit, The Road and Poe

  

  Viggo Mortensen was a recipient of the Half Life Award at the 2008 Cinevegas Film Festival. The actor was on hand to receive the award as well as to promote his film, Alatriste, which was screening at the festival.

  ReelzChannel.com had the chance for an exclusive interview with the amiable Mortensen during the festival and we got some great info on the actor's upcoming projects.
  

  For the full interview including discussion of The Road, The Hobbit and those Sylvestor Stallone Edgar Allen Poe rumors, check out our Exclusive Viggo Interview.
  

  
  

  Posted 06/23/2008 by Jeff

  Viggo Mortensen | The Road | The Hobbit

Thursday, June 12

• Update: The Hobbit Lawsuit
  

  Not so fast Mr. del Toro.
  
  As we reported back in February, the Tolkien estate is suing New Line Cinema (or maybe now Warner Bros.) claiming that New Line still owes Tolkien's son, Christopher Tolkien, a sizable portion of the profits from The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Tolkien is also looking to prevent the filming of the new Hobbit movies under director Guillermo del Toro.
  
  A jury trial date of October 19, 2009 has been set to determine whether Tolkien has the right to block the Hobbit prequels.
  
  Meanwhile, on June 6th a California judge will issue a ruling as to whether New Line still owes money to the Tolkien estate. Tolkien is also seeking to prevent the use of a collection of memoirs entitled "The Silmarillo" as source material for the Hobbit movie.
  
  We'll continue to update you as this story unfolds.
  
  
  
  

  Posted 06/12/2008 by Jeff

  Guillermo del Toro | The Hobbit

Thursday, May 1

• McKellen to Don Gandalf Robe and Beard Once Again

  Ian McKellen will reprise his role as Gandalf in Guillermo del Toro's Hobbit prequels.

  The actor confirmed the role when he told Brit movie mag Empire that he "loved playing Gandalf" and "It's not a role you turn down." He went on to say that he was offered the part in the very room where Peter Jackson offered him the part for the first trilogy.

  The Hobbit will be based on the original Tolkien book and is slated for release in 2010. The second Hobbit movie will be an original story covering the period between the Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring.

  
  

  Posted 05/01/2008 by Jeff

  The Hobbit | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Thursday, April 24

• It's Official: Guillermo del Toro to Direct Hobbit Flicks

  After months and months of speculation, it's finally been confirmed that Hellboy director Guillermo del Toro has officially signed on to direct both The Hobbit and its as-yet-untitled sequel. Variety reports that del Toro, currently hard at work putting the finishing touches on Hellboy II: The Golden Army, will soon be packing up his belongings and moving to New Zealand, where he'll spend the next four years making the films with the help of Lord of the Rings demigod Peter Jackson and his WETA wizards.

  The recent announcement throws one heck of a monkey wrench into del Toro's already packed schedule of upcoming projects, including a possible third Hellboy movie. Somehow I think the fanboys will find a way to forgive him.

  Source: Variety

  
  

  Posted 04/24/2008 by Thomas

  Peter Jackson | Guillermo del Toro | The Hobbit | Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Monday, February 11

• Tolkien's Estate Suing New Line

  After the runaway success of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy, not everyone is happy in the Hobbit kingdom.

  J.R.R. Tolkien's estate filed suit against New Line today claiming that the studio failed to pay a gross profit participation for the trilogy, which grossed nearly $6 billion worldwide. The Tolkien Trust, a British charity that manages Tolkien's estate, seeks $150 million in compensatory, punitive damages and a declaration from the courts that would allow the group to terminate future Tolkien-based projects by New Line, including the long-rumored Hobbit project.

  
  

  Posted 02/11/2008 by Jeff

  The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | The Hobbit | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Monday, January 28

• Welcome to the Shire, Guillermo del Toro

  Lord of the Rings geeks have reason to rejoice this morning. According to the The Hollywood Reporter, fanboy favorite Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth) is currently in talks to direct the two-part adaptation of The Hobbit, based on LotR author J.R.R. Tolkien's follow-up to his acclaimed fantasy trilogy. It's a welcome development for Tolkien aficionados, the majority of whom would likely list del Toro as their second choice to helm The Hobbit after LotR director Peter Jackson, who has opted for Executive Producing duties on the highly anticipated pair of films.

  Del Toro is currently hard at work putting the finishing touches on Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, which opens July 11, 2008.

  
  

  Posted 01/28/2008 by Thomas

  Peter Jackson | Guillermo del Toro | Hellboy II: The Golden Army | Hellboy | The Hobbit