The Hobbit News

Audiences will be re-visiting Middle Earth again in the near future, this time at the hands of Hellboy director Guillermo Del Toro, with The Hobbit.

While we're a little disappointed that while the lovable dwarf Gimli won't be in The Hobbit, we are excited to hear what Del Toro had to say to Total Film about the new creatures he will bring to the screen:

"I think one of the designs I’m the proudest of is Smaug. Obviously he took the longest. It’s actually still active: we’re finishing his colour palette and a little bit of the texture. But the bulk of the design took about a year, solid. It’s because of the unique features of the dragon. Early in production I came up with a very strong idea that would separate Smaug from every other dragon ever made. The problem was implementing that idea. But I think we’ve nailed it."

Be sure to check out the rest of the Total Film interview for more about the making of The Hobbit!

Jonathan Rhys-Davies, who played the dwarf Gimli in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy, has declined to appear in the forthcoming prequel films based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. While Gimli doesn't appear in The Hobbit, Rhys-Davies could have played the dwarf's father, Gloin.

"I've already been asked and to be honest with you, I wouldn't," Rhys-Davies said. "I have already completely ruled it out. There's a sentimental part of me that would love to be involved again. Really I am not sure my face can take that sort of punishment any more."

Guillermo Del Toro will direct both Hobbit films. The first film is scheduled to hit theaters in December of 2011, followed a year later by the second film in December of 2012.

Actor Ian McKellen, best known as Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings films, and Magneto in the X-Men films, recently spoke to Empire Magazine about the forthcoming adaptation of J.R.R Tolkien's The Hobbit and its following sequel.

Here is what McKellan had to say about the Guillermo Del Toro-directed projects:

"The scripts for the two films will be delivered very soon," he revealed. "Then they'll be budgeted, and then they'll be cast. And they'll be going when they've always said they would be, which is next spring – March or April. Guillermo even told me at one point, 'We're going to film for 383 days.' He's got that artistic autism! Jackson's the same; they're very, very, very alike. They also very different, but they've so much in common. They both can't stand Hollywood and have wonderful imaginations, and they're both obsessed with gore and fantasy. Both of them laugh a great deal. Guillermo's one of the most brilliant men I've ever met. His English vocabulary is way superior to mine!"

Read more of what he had to say here, including some thoughts on the X-Men spinoff Magneto.

In a new interview with Rotten Tomatoes, Ian McKellen spoke on The Hobbit.

Specifically, the veteran actor said he can't wait to portray Gandalf the Grey again.

"Grey Gandalf is my favorite," he said. "Peter Jackson's too, we always preferred Gandalf the Grey. Peter liked him because he got down and dirty. He slept in the hedgerows; he was closer to the earth and not quite so spiritual. He's also funnier - he's got more variety to him. We thought there was more scope in that Gandalf."

The first of the two Hobbit movies will be released in December of 2011. 

While it's known that Guillermo Del Toro wil be directing The Hobbit, rumors have been floating that Peter Jackson - an acclaimed director himself and the producer/writer on The Hobbit - might jump behind the camera for a scene or two?

But Del Toro shot that talk down during a recent interview with MTV.

“We talked about it. I normally oppose fully the idea of second unit so my first instinct is no, we will not have second unit on this film,” Del Toro said of whether or not Jackson would jump behind the camera at all. “If there is a scheduling conflict or a problem of that sort, we may consider it, but right now the idea is I shoot everything.”

Ian McKellen has made it very well-known that he'll reprise the role of Gandalf in The Hobbit.

But what about Viggo  Mortensen? Is Aragorn going to be in the new film about Middle Earth or not?

“Ian is very proactive. He’s been banging that drum!” Mortensen told MTV. “It was a very important project to all of us and especially to him I think. He wants to make sure Gandalf is in there and in there early! I’m going to cross that bridge when I get to it.”

It's official:

The Lord of the Rings screenwriting team of Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens will join The Hobbit director Guillermo del Toro to write the screenplay for the pair of upcoming Hobbit movies.

Sources told Entertainment Weekly the deals are all finished and they have already begun writing. The Hobbit will center on Frodo's uncle, Bilbo Baggins (who will NOT be played by James McAvoy, as earlier reports had stated), and his initial discovery of the immensely-powerful ring.

New Line and MGM plan to release the two films around Christmas 2011 and Christmas 2012.

In a recent interview with IGN, director Guillermo del Toro assuaged fears that he would change the look of Gollum in The Hobbit.

When asked if he would continue with a CG Gollum, the Hellboy director said: "Absolutely. I think that it worked perfectly on the [Lord of the Rings] trilogy and if it ain't broke, why fix it?"

del Toro also had the following to say about special effects in general on The Hobbit:

"You have to be very careful not to rely on a single tool – and this is another thing that I share a passion for with Peter Jackson. We both are huge fans of 'old-world' techniques like maquettes, models, miniatures, paintings – and in the case of The Hobbit, I do intend to continue this trend and bring much more animatronics into the mix.

"We need to keep that art form alive, because it brings a textural power to the movie that ultimately affects the content. The creatures somehow seem more tactile and more tangible than CG."

On second thought, maybe James McAvoy won't be playing Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit.

"I'm a huge fan of the Tolkien saga, everything to do with Middle-earth," the actor told MTV News this weekend. "But no there's no truth in the fact that they've approached me yet."

Of course, just because they haven't approached McAvoy doesn't mean he's out of the running yet. Would you wanna see him star as Bilbo in The Hobbit?

Up next, fans can catch the British star alongside Angelina Jolie as Wesley Gibson in Wanted.

With The Hobbit now confirmed as coming to the big screen, one of the most pressing questions in the movie world is:

Who will play Bilbo Baggins?

According to a source at British newspaper The Daily Express: "A number of names have been doing the rounds, including Daniel Radcliffe and Jack Black, but James MCAvoy is the one the film's bosses really want. They're expected to have talks soon, so hopefully it could be confirmed in the not too distant future."

McAvoy seems like a solid choice, but perhaps we should take this source's information with the proverbial grain of salt. After all: Jack Black is really being considered?!?