The Hobbit
Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh expressed interest in 1995 in filming The Hobbit, which would be part one of a trilogy (the other two would have been based on The Lord of the Rings). Frustration arose when Jackson's producer, Harvey Weinstein, discovered Saul Zaentz had production rights to The Hobbit, but distribution rights still belonged to United Artists (which had kept those rights, believing that filmmakers would probably adapt The Hobbit rather than The Lord of the Rings, and therefore wanted a profit)
The Hobbit is the title planned for a two-part film. The film is intended to be based on the novel of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien. The film is in development and Peter Jackson, director of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy will serve as executive producer and co-writer. Guillermo del Toro worked with Jackson for over two years and would have been director, but left the project in May 2010. Originally, both parts would have served as separate films. The first would have adapted The Hobbit and the second would have bridged the gap between this and The Lord of the Rings.
It was del Toro’s intention to split and expand the narrative of The Hobbit over two parts of a single film. Jackson has reportedly signed on to direct both parts of “The Hobbit” in July 2010. Actors from the film trilogy, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis (as Gollum), and Hugo Weaving are attached to reprise their roles. In a June 2010 interview on The Graham Norton Show, English comedian and actor Bill Bailey confirmed that he had been asked to audition for the role of Gloin.
MGM expressed interest in a second film in 2006, set between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Jackson concurred, stating “one of the drawbacks of The Hobbit is [that] it’s relatively lightweight compared to Lord of the Rings… There [are] a lot of sections in which a character like Gandalf disappears for a while. From memory – I mean, I haven’t read it for a while now – but I think he references going off to meet with the White Council, who are actually characters like Galadriel and Saruman and people who we see in Lord of the Rings. He mysteriously vanishes for a while and then comes back, but we don’t really know what goes on.” Jackson was also interested in showing Gollum’s journey to Mordor and Aragorn setting a watch on the Shire.
After his hiring in 2008, Del Toro confirmed the sequel would be about “trying to reconcile the facts of the first movie with a slightly different point of view. You would be able to see events that were not witnessed in the first.” He also noted the story must be drawn from only what is mentioned in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, as they do not have the rights to The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales.
Del Toro also added (before writing began) that if they could not find a coherent story for the second film, they would just film The Hobbit, stating “The Hobbit is better contained in a single film and kept brisk and fluid with no artificial ‘break point’.”By November 2008, he elaborated he felt the book was more detailed and eventful than people may remember.Del Toro was faced with two possible places to split the story, including Smaug’s defeat. He noted the second film would need to end by leading directly into The Fellowship of the Ring.
In June 2009, Del Toro revealed he had decided where to divide the story based on comments from fans about signifying a change in Bilbo’s relationship with the dwarves.
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