The latest is that Jackson will be producing, and also directing alongside Del Toro.
Much of the original cast will be re-appearing including major parts by Ian McKellan as Gandalf, Andy Serkis as Gollum, Christopher Lee as Saruman, and Ian Holm as the narrator Bilbo Baggins.
The plot point of the second movie will be based on notes from Tolkien's books including the Appendices of Lord of the Rings, writings in the Silmarillion. One of the plot points for the second movie will be the corruption of Saruman. The movie will essentially end sometime just before The Lord of the Rings, it spans over a 50+ year period beginning with Gandalf's departure to the White Council (Galadriel, Saruman, and Gandalf) in order to battle with an evil in the dark tower of Dol Guldur in the South of Mirkwood. As the story goes, Sauron had taken shape again in the form of a Necromancer who was gathering the Rings of Power; initially the White Council thought it was the Witch King of Angmar setting up a new abode. Anyway, that is the setting for the start of the movie. How Sauron and the evil will be depicted through the years between the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings is questionable, it was a relatively quiet period.
A major problem is Christopher Tolkien essentially owns all that had been published since the death of JRR Tolkien. So Peter Jackson may not be entitled to use any of them. I do hope something can be worked out though, if the movie isn't kept true to the notes then it will not really be viewed as a legitimate part of the story. There are currently a lot of court battles going on, including the major one where Christopher Tolkien is suing for ~80 million dollars share from the three billion dollars in profit that New Line made off of Lord of the Rings.
The Hobbit will be released Christmas 2010 and part two Christmas 2011.
Much of the original cast will be re-appearing including major parts by Ian McKellan as Gandalf, Andy Serkis as Gollum, Christopher Lee as Saruman, and Ian Holm as the narrator Bilbo Baggins.
The plot point of the second movie will be based on notes from Tolkien's books including the Appendices of Lord of the Rings, writings in the Silmarillion. One of the plot points for the second movie will be the corruption of Saruman. The movie will essentially end sometime just before The Lord of the Rings, it spans over a 50+ year period beginning with Gandalf's departure to the White Council (Galadriel, Saruman, and Gandalf) in order to battle with an evil in the dark tower of Dol Guldur in the South of Mirkwood. As the story goes, Sauron had taken shape again in the form of a Necromancer who was gathering the Rings of Power; initially the White Council thought it was the Witch King of Angmar setting up a new abode. Anyway, that is the setting for the start of the movie. How Sauron and the evil will be depicted through the years between the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings is questionable, it was a relatively quiet period.
A major problem is Christopher Tolkien essentially owns all that had been published since the death of JRR Tolkien. So Peter Jackson may not be entitled to use any of them. I do hope something can be worked out though, if the movie isn't kept true to the notes then it will not really be viewed as a legitimate part of the story. There are currently a lot of court battles going on, including the major one where Christopher Tolkien is suing for ~80 million dollars share from the three billion dollars in profit that New Line made off of Lord of the Rings.
The Hobbit will be released Christmas 2010 and part two Christmas 2011.
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