Thanks EW!

“We’ve decided to have The Hobbit span the two movies, including the White Council and the comings and goings of Gandalf to Dol Guldur,” says Del Toro.

“We decided it would be a mistake to try to cram everything into one movie,” adds Jackson. “The essential brief was to do The Hobbit, and it allows us to make The Hobbit in a little more style, if you like, of the [LOTR] trilogy.”

Now we can begin to speculate where the cut is going to be =)

Thanks EM!

Never mind the global recession – filmmaker Peter Jackson is believed to be taking to the skies with a new, $106 million jet.

Aircraft industry insiders are abuzz with speculation about the Oscar winner’s upgrade to a Gulfstream G550 jet, one of two exclusive private jets sold to New Zealanders in the past 18 months.

Jackson, whose net wealth is estimated at $450 million on the NBR Rich List, already owns a G-IV jet, but those in the know say he’s decided to upgrade.

“Everyone in the industry is talking about it,” said a source. “He’s got a G-IV at the moment so he probably wants an upgrade and it’s a pretty good plane to upgrade to.”

Another source said there was a wait time of 12 months for the jet, so Jackson most likely would have got in early. “I’ve heard about it from a number of people and I’m not surprised he’s bought one. They are great planes.”

The jet is decked out with four living areas, an office, satellite communications and can seat up to 18 passengers. It has Rolls Royce turbofan engines, allowing for longer-haul flights to be completed easier.

Lord Of The Rings

IGN: Will you be reprising your role as Saruman in The Hobbit or the follow-up film that links it to Lord of the Rings?

Lee: I’ve heard Ian McKellen has agreed to play Gandalf again in The Hobbit. But my character doesn’t appear [in the book] at all. But then again you never know. They might suddenly put in the council of the wizards. I have no idea. Nobody has approached me and as for this mysterious other film, is it supposed to take place before The Hobbit, after The Hobbit, before Lord of the Rings?

IGN: It’s supposed to link the events of The Hobbit with those of Lord of the Rings. As a Tolkien expert you might be a good person to have on set…

Lee: Well, yes, because you have to remember that they’re thousands of years old these wizards. It might be the time when Saruman the White was the head of the council and was a decent, noble, marvellous person. They might show him in that light because it was never explained why he suddenly turns.

IGN: Would you be willing to reprise the role?

Lee: In the spirit very much so. But I’ve reached an age now [86] where going to New Zealand again would be a very considerable effort. It would not be easy because it’s an exhausting journey. Even with a break I’m not sure I could do it.

IGN: If they could film your part in London, would you be interested?

Lee: Oh yes, of course. I’d be delighted.

“I’d rather finish the job myself than have another actor do it,” says Mortensen. “I’m interested in principle, but I’d want to see it done in the right spirit of Tolkien.”

Viggo gave a nod of approval to new director Guillermo del Toro, saying, “He’s strongminded, intelligent and probably just as stubborn [as Jackson].

“I don’t know if it’ll be as big a circus [as the Trilogy] in terms of several people writing changes at the last minute.

“Maybe it’ll be more streamlined and efficient, but to some degree it’ll probably be as bewildering a set-up as the other three.”

Mortensen also claims the original trilogy became more led by effects as the series progressed.

“The Fellowship Of The Ring for me was the one most faithful to Tolkien. The one that had the most to do with any kind of subtlety in terms of performance and storytelling.

“Starting with the second one it became more of a blockbuster special effects thing. That’s not to say as that type of movie they weren’t the best.

“You can’t argue with the films’ success, but had it been me, I would have focused less on the effects and more on the characterisations.

“I’d have allowed the secondary characters to speak more and not be so focused on the heroes. There was more balance in the way that all the races of Middle-earth were presented in the first one. It was more about the relationships… That’s just my personal taste.”

Thanks totalfilm for the info!

According to the Empire’s online description:

January is, statistically speaking, the most miserable of months. It’s cold, it’s dark, and Moira Stuart is forever banging on about paying your tax bill by the 31st, or Mr. Taxman will be round to cut off a pound, or three, of flesh. So here at Empire, we feel it’s our duty to cheer you up – and what better way than by presenting to you our brand new issue, which should be hitting newsagent and supermarket shelves near you any… second… now. Inside, you’ll find all kinds of cheery tonics, such as our horror overload, featuring Bruce Campbell, Freddy and Jason, the Wolfman’s Emily Blunt, and the Lesbian Vampire Killers, and our lovely look at the individuals who make up the Watchmen. But pride of place – on our cover and in our hearts – is our big special on The Hobbit. What’s that, you say? It’s not even out for two years? Well, yes, but inside our special feature, you’ll find a one-stop shop of information on the films that may be the most anticipated of the next few years.

Thanks TOR!

What’s this all about? Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin are nowhere in The Hobbit book. In fact, they’re not even born during Bilbo Baggins’ adventures with the dragons. Could it be one of the first clues about the plot of the second Hobbit film? Let’s recall that it’s generally considered the bridge between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, which may include some of the original cast such as Ian McKellen (Gandalf) and Andy Serkis (Gollum). However, director Guillermo del Toro has been absolutely silent about the concrete details of the second film.

We’ll bring you the updates to this information as soon as possible. In the meantime, what do you think about a possible return of the 4 beloved hobbits?

Thanks FS!

“I’m having supper with [director] Guillermo del Toro this evening, so you’re asking me twelve hours too early.”.

Also he already confirm that he will be in The Hobbit.

HarperCollins is to publish a new book by the late Lord of the Rings author J R R Tolkien. The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún, edited and introduced by Tolkien’s son Christopher, will be published in hardback in May 2009.

The previously unpublished work was written while Tolkien was professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford University during the 1920s and ’30s, before he wrote The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The publication will make available for the first time Tolkien’s extensive retelling in English narrative verse of the epic Norse tales of Sigurd the Völsung and the Fall of the Niflungs.

Christopher Tolkien edited Tolkien’s most recent title The Children of Húrin in 2007.

Further details about the contents of the book will be revealed closer to publication.

Thanks Bookseller!

J.R.R. Tolkien was born on 3rd January 1892 at Bloemfontein in the Orange Free State. When he was four years old his mother, Marry Suffield, and his younger brother Hilary, went to England. At that time his father was ill and soon died of rheumatic fever. After his father’s death the family lived at Sarehole, on the south-eastern edge of Birmingham. Ronald spent his childhood there and later scenes from this area would be depicted in his pictures and writings.

Another tragic event occurred when J.R.R. Tolkien was 12 – the death of his mother who died of diabetes. He and his brother Hilary became wards of a priest at the Birmingham Oratory. The boys attended King Edward’s School in Birmingham. At school Ronald was interested in Classic as well as Anglo-Saxon and Middle English. At that time he began to develop his linguistic talent by creating his own languages with grammar and history. Not surprisingly that Tolkien was First in English Language and Literature at Exeter College.

J.R.R. Tolkien was married to Edith Bratt. He had known her since they had both lived in the same house in Birmingham. Ronald loved Edith and continued to do so despite being forbidden by Father Morgan to contact her when he studied at college. Considering that it would ruin Ronald’s career, Father Morgan would not give his consent to an early marriage.

Tolkien was commissioned in the Lancashire Fusiliers and participated in the battle of the Somme. After the war he obtained a post on the New English Dictionary, and began to write the mythological and legendary cycle which he originally called “The Book of Lost Tales” but which eventually became known as “The Silmarillion”.

Later Tolkien was appointed as Reader in the English Language at the University of Leeds. Among the students he was famous for his strong and popular teaching. Then Professor Tolkien was elected to continue work at Oxford, as a Professor of Anglo-Saxon. He taught Anglo-Saxon and English right up until his retirement in 1959. Honestly, many of the world scientists supposed that Tolkien had been one of the most gifted and clever philologists.

By that time the Tolkien’s family consisted of four children (three sons and a daughter) and more than anything father liked to tell his children about mythical beings – elves, hobbits, etc. At first such stories were simply fairy tales. And the first book, which made him famous worldwide, “the Hobbit” (published in 1937) was written in the genre of a fairy tale. The book was a huge success and the public demanded a sequel. Thus, a popular trilogy “the Lord of the Rings” came into being.

Having retired, Tolkien and his wife lived first in the Headington area of Oxford, then moved to Bournemouth. His wife died in 1971 and after that Tolkien decided to return to Oxford.

He was diagnosed as having a bleeding gastric ulcer, and despite some reassuring reports died on September 2nd 1973, aged 81. Tolkien and his wife are buried together in a single grave in the Catholic section of Wolvercote cemetery in the northern suburbs of Oxford.

Although the greatest master of fantasy passed away, he left the door open for anyone to an enchanting world of his stories, the key to which is love, kindness and loyalty. These are the qualities that help Tolkien’s characters to win over Evil.