What exactly is going on with the two-part adaptation of The Hobbit? The world seems to be holding its breath in anticipation, including us, but as the calendar turned to November, we turned to a trusted rock-solid inside source and found a dragon’s treasure of updates. Read the rest of this entry »

Our friend Kristin from the Reelz Channel writes: We had a chance to grill Doug Jones about whether or not he is going to be in The Hobbit.

From Total Film: Eighteen months ago, Guillermo del Toro had a 10-year-plan. His life was mapped out, and it had nothing to do with JRR Tolkien’s lovingly rendered cartography of Middle-earth.  “I was calmly laying out the next decade of my life when The Hobbit appeared,” he laughs. “I was preparing all these things and all of a sudden The Hobbit shows up and takes over my life.” Make no mistake: The Hobbit is his precious. Del Toro knows more than anyone that this diptych could – should – define his career.  And so the director has been busy building a world that not only honours JRR Tolkien’s book and Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings trilogy but will emerge assuredly, triumphantly, his own. More..

News is on the Associated Press wire today that the founder of the pop-culture showcase, the San Diego Comic-Con, Sheldon Dorf, has died at age 76. A spokesperson for Dorf’s family, friend Greg Koudoulian, says he died at a San Diego hospital as a result of kidney failure and problems caused by diabetes. At the official Comic-Con Website there is a message from the Board of Directors, Staff and volunteers of the Comic-Con organization as they “mourn the passing of our dear friend Shel”. Read the rest of this entry »

Thanks to message board member Theodred for alerting us to this story from scifiwire.com: Ian McKellen, whom we expect will put on Gandalf’s gray robes in director Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming Hobbit movies, tells us he’s finally read the script for the films. And, no, he won’t tell us much about it, except that producer Peter Jackson (who co-wrote the script with longtime Lord of the Rings collaborators Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, as well as del Toro) wrote it specifically for him.

“As Peter has said, they loved writing Gandalf [for The Hobbit] because they knew who they were writing him for,” McKellen told us exclusively in an interview last week while promoting AMC’s The Prisoner. “There are a lot of characters in The Hobbit, including, crucially, Bilbo, and they don’t know who’s going to play Bilbo. So it’s extremely attractive that this part has been written for me. The other Gandalf was written for, well, just as Gandalf. There’s lots for me to enjoy, in all sorts of ways. And I couldn’t be happier. But I’m sworn to secrecy. I’m not to say anything at all about the script.” More..

Holbytla writes: The BBC has just commissioned a six part series entitled ‘Handle with Prayer’ starring Tom Hollander, for broadcast sometime in 2010 (production beginning in January). This obviously casts doubt on his availability for the role of Bilbo, having previously appeared on a number of lists as a possible candidate for the part.

Thorin writes: Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri is showcasing a student production of The Hobbit, both this weekend and next weekend at the times listed here.

Thanks to many of you who sent in this story from Empireonline.com. I’m sure we’ll all miss John as part of The Hobbit cast. From Empireonline.com: John Rhys-Davies was, of course, Gimli the dwarf in The Lord of the Rings, and gave the series many of its funniest and most memorable moments. And while Gimli doesn’t appear in The Hobbit, his father Gloin does, so we asked him recently whether he’d be back for another go. “I’ve already been asked and to be honest with you, I wouldn’t. 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.” More..

David Ferry Jr. of the Reelz Channel writes: I just thought I’d let you know that Doug Jones is making an appearance this week on Movie Mob, a show about movies on Reelz Channel. Tune in to see if he says anything about The Hobbit!

Sir Ian Mckellen is enjoying a relaxing holiday before throwing himself into filming The Hobbit – because it’s the first time he’s taken a break in his entire career. The veteran actor celebrated his 70th birthday in May and admits reaching the landmark age prompted him to slow down his hectic filming schedule and take some time to himself.

He says, “I’m in the middle of a holiday. I’m not working at the moment and it means I can do lovely things. It’s a change for me because, for the first 50 years of my life, I just worked and worked and worked and I didn’t feel happy unless I knew what the next job was going to be. And then I hit 70 this year and I thought, ‘Oh, I’m going to have a little bit of downtime for myself.’” More..