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Of all the many promotional partners lined up to market the second Hobbit film, The Desolation Of Smaug , US restaurant chain Denny’s always seemed like a weird one. Still, it promises wide exposure and in addition to Hobbit-themed menus (honest), it has also been handed some exclusive featurette footage. So here’s a piece about Beorn’s home. Beorn, for those who have recently been clubbed by a dwarf and may be unaware, is a “skinchanger”, a shape shifter who interacts with Gandalf and co on their quest in the film. Played by Mikael Persbrandt. Given that he is, as Ian McKellen describes him, "A man who is sometimes a bear, and a bear who is sometimes a man,” he naturally needs an unusually large dwelling. Which means some creative filmmaking as usual from the production team. In the featurette, Peter Jackson and some of his cast and crew talk about the experience of shooting in it, and there’s even a little behind-the-scenes footage, including Martin Freeman giving one of

That figure includes the major 266 days of filming with actors, although it doesn't include an additional two months or so of "pick-up" shoots. Making the movie trilogy The Hobbit has cost more than half a billion dollars so far, double the amount spent on the three movies in the The Lord of the Rings series. That figure includes the major 266 days of filming with actors that was completed last year, although it doesn't include an additional two months or so of "pick-up" shoots done this year. There will likely also be additional postproduction costs as the next two movies are completed. The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug Trailer & New Images- Through March 31, production had cost 676 million New Zealand dollars, or $561 million at current exchange rates, according to financial documents filed Friday in New Zealand, where the movies are being made. Distributor Warner Bros. and director Peter Jackson may consider it money well spent. To dat

Smaug is here, and he's not best pleased. He's also not in the best possible light, with his particular brand of hot halitosis covering his modesty, but to make up for it, at least you can hear Benedict Cumberbatch's best wyrm tongue in the new trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug . Top tip: get your headphones on and crank up the volume. It's a well cut trailer with some great "Leggy moments" as Orlando Bloom calls them, as well as a gas refinery's worth of explosions and tonnes and tonnes of golden coin. Luke Evans' Bard The Bowman also gets his chance to shine - though perhaps not as brightly as the aforementioned gold - and there's even time for a few comic beats in there too, thanks to good ol' Bilbo and Gandalf. Still no Stephen Fry as the grotesque master of Laketown, and no Beorn to boot, but that's all well and good - they can't go about revealing everything so early on (though a smidge more Smaug would be ni

Yesterday’s news that James Cameron has hired Black Dahlia screenwriter Josh Friedman to work on Avatar 2 with him was apparently just the tip of the iceberg lurking in Pandora’s oceans (assuming Pandora’s oceans have cold enough zones for icebergs, which remains to be seen). Regardless, Cameron has now made good on his statement of May last year about being the Avatar business, confirming he’ll make Avatar 2, 3 and 4 ready for release in a year apart from 2016 onwards. It appears that spending time in New Zealand working on the stories has allowed some of Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings spirit to creep into Cameron's already workaholic brain. Now Cameron and 20th Century Fox have gone public with the announcement that, in addition to Friedman, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes co-writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver and Savages scribe Shane Salerno will each take co-scribbling duties on the three new trips to Pandora. Salerno has form collaborating with Cameron, as he worke

Today is the day and now is the time. The trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug is here. Following on from where we left Bilbo ( Martin Freeman ), the dwarves and Ian McKellen’s Gandalf continue their journey to the Lonely Mountain, where Thorin ( Richard Armitage ) and the rest seek to reclaim their homeland from a troublesome squatting occupant: Smaug the dragon. The focus here is more on the new faces we can expect in the second film, including Lee Pace’s Elvenking Thranduil, Evangeline Lily as elf warrior Tauriel, Mikael Persbrandt as shape-changer Beorn, Luke Evans as Bard the Bowman and, just because he can do it without needing big makeup changes, Orlando Bloom’s athletic Legolas. With plenty of action on show, some nice looks at the new folk and a solid, dramatic reveal (well, after the glimpses in the first film) of Smaug’s reptilian mug (no Cumberchat- yet), this definitely has us ready to see more. Please Leave A Comment- Source- Empire

When The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits theaters on Dec. 13, there will be a fresh face among the residents of Middle-earth: Tauriel, an elf warrior played by Evangeline Lilly of Lost fame. “She’s slightly reckless and totally ruthless and doesn’t hesitate to kill,” says Lilly. She’s also not found anywhere in J.R.R. Tolkien’s original fantasy novel, or in any of Tolkien’s other writings for that matter. Director Peter Jackson and his co-writers on the Hobbit trilogy, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, invented the character to expand the world of the elves of Mirkwood Forest — and to bring some more female energy to the otherwise male-dominated Hobbit narrative. “Tauriel is the head of the Elven Guard,” Lilly explains. “She’s a Sylvan Elf, which means she’s of a much lower order than the elves we all became acquainted with in The Lord of the Rings. She doesn’t hold the same kind of status that Arwen or Galadriel or Elrond or Legolas do — she’s much more lowly. She sort of goes

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Review By: MattInRC The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is big on imagery, long on talk, and falls short in a couple of critical areas. But go see it anyways. Upon watching the first trailer for Fall's highly anticipated The Hobbit , I was hesitant to grant it any credit beyond mere curiosity. Its older brother, the incredible Lord of the Rings trilogy, occupies a special place on most filmgoers' top 20 lists. The series touched audiences in a way that still reverberates throughout Hollywood: one cannot watch a Medieval war-epic made after 2003 without seeing LOTR's footprints somewhere. It was with this pedigree that a slow and confusing trailer appeared earlier this year, touching off speculation that perhaps Director Peter Jackson's lightning in a bottle had been spent. And while The Hobbit is slow at parts and missing any memorable action sequences, its heart still beats with the resounding pulse of Middle-earth.

Thanks to Theonering.net , we got a hold 13-minute featurette that takes you behind the scenes with the cast and crew explaining the process to you. The Hobbit is a series of three epic fantasy-adventure films directed, co-written and produced by Peter Jackson and based on J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Hobbit (1937). The films are, by subtitle, An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug and There and Back Again, due for theatrical release in 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively. Please Leave A Comment-

Win your tickets to see an advance screening for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey ! The screening is on December 10th @ 7:00PM at Century Stadium 14 in Sacramento. The Hobbit is a series of three epic fantasy-adventure films directed, co-written and produced by Peter Jackson and based on J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Hobbit (1937). The films are, by subtitle, An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug and There and Back Again , due for theatrical release in 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively. The series acts as a prequel to Jackson's The Lord of the Rings series and will star Ian McKellen , reprising his role as Gandalf, Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield, and Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug. Several other actors will reprise their roles from The Lord of the Rings, including Andy Serkis, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Ian Holm, Elijah Wood, and Orlando Bloom . Also returning for the production are a s

Warner Bros and New Line has unleashed these 4 posters that you can collect, limited supply, at IMAX midnight showings of THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY . Check your local IMAX theaters for showtimes . See all the posters after the Jump... “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakensheild. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever … Gollum.

Considering they beefed up Peter Jackson's The Hobbit into a trilogy halfway through production, it's not hard to believe they'll be cutting it close to finish the first installment before its premiere. But did you know they have only two days of wiggle room? Jackson has been walking fans through the production process via some intriguing production blogs from the set, and the latest takes us into the home stretch of finalizing the cut before the Nov. 28 New Zealand premiere (New Zealanders get to see it a few weeks before the rest of us). It's fascinating to see the well-oiled machine Jackson has assembled to crank these things out, but you have to wonder if this level of clinical refinement will scrub away some of the charm of the original Lord of the Rings trilogy. Please Leave A Comment- Source- Blastr

Here then is a poster of Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble and Grub Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Thorin Oakenshield, Dwalin, Balin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori, Nori and Ori for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, as posted to the internet by Peter Jackson himself on his Facebook page . All sorts of faces are here: smiling ones (Bofur, top right, played by James Nesbitt), frowning ones (Thorin, middle, played by Richard Armitage), hungry ones (Bombur, centre, played by Stephen Hunter) and surprisingly seductive ones (KIli, top, played by Aidan Turner) – all lit and posed in a way that fills them with character, just the way Mr. Jackson likes it. Please Leave A Comment-  Source- Empire

You all have been waiting for it and we got it. Here is the brand new trailer for The Hobbit . “ The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey ” follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakensheild. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever … Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths ofguile and courage that surprise even him, he also ga

Warner Bros. and New Line have set July 18, 2014, as the release date for the third film in Peter Jackson's ambitious The Hobbit trilogy . Additionally, the second film has been retitled The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug . The third film will take the title that was previously assigned to the second film, The Hobbit: There and Back Again . Warners is banking big on the trilogy. And, in sharp contrast to Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, the second and third Hobbit pics will open within seven months of each other (the Lord of the Rings pics opened a year apart, at Christmas). “We wanted to have a shorter gap between the second and third films," Warner Bros. president of domestic distribution Dan Fellman said in a statement. "Opening in July affords us not only the perfect summer tentpole, but fans will have less time to wait for the finale of this epic adventure." Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, president of international distribution, added: "The

Peter Jackson is looking to return to Middle Earth yet again. Sources close to the production of The Hobbit say the filmmaker has concluded that he wants to turn his upcoming two-film adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien epic into a trilogy. That would require additional shooting that sources say could take place next summer for about two months in New Zealand. Jackson teased the idea at Comic-Con on July 14 , telling fans that he wants to shoot more footage. But since then, sources say that studio Warner Bros., Jackson, producer Fran Walsh and writer-producer Philippa Boyens began exploring the logistics of what it would take to make another movie. Those talks are said to have accelerated in recent days, with the studio on board if the right financial arrangements can be achieved. That includes securing new actor deals for the expansive cast as well as shoring up certain rights associated with the property (The Hobbit has a long a tortured rights history.) “If we’re going to do it

If you weren’t lucky enough to be sitting in the packed Hall H at this year’s Comic-Con to witness Peter Jackson and co unveiling new footage from The Hobbit , the director is ready to dry your tears with the latest video production blog. Prepare to take a trip to San Diego with Jackson, and to get a look at some of what they showed at the event, by watching the video below… The latest video blog is yet another treat featuring, amongst other things, Sylvester McCoy as his legendarily eccentric self (including playing the spoons on every available surface and person) and Martin Freeman using the large-scale Bag End set as the jumping off point for his take on the Dennis Waterman spoof from Little Britain (“Write the feme tune, sing the feme tune”). Plus you get a Jackson’s eye view of the San Diego madness, some brief glimpses of new footage and yet another emotional ride packed with peeks at the crew and work, not to mention Andy Serkis in a barrel. Oh, and the wrap party follow

Not one to do things by halves, Peter Jackson arrived in San Diego with a fellowship of friends – Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Philippa Boyens and Andy Serkis, plus Elijah Wood , who happened to be at Comic-Con promoting Tron: Uprising – as well a whopping 12 and a half minutes of footage. (After the mixed reception to the film’s look at April’s CinemaCon, this time Jackson opted for 24 frames per second and 2D.) Though the sequences were mainly drawn from the first Hobbit movie, An Unexpected Journey, there were also plenty of snippets from Part 2. The reel opened with a fun scene at Bag End, with the 13 dwarves taking advantage of Bilbo’s hospitality while discussing plans to invade the Lonely Mountain and take back their long-lost gold. “There is no way into the mountain,” grumbles Balin (Ken Stott). Gandalf begs to differ, producing an ancient key that will open a hidden door and explaining that “the task I have in mind will require stealth and a great deal of

The first part of Peter Jackson's The Hobbit is now a mere five months away, and heralding its presence at this year's Comic-Con, Peter Jackson has taken to his facepage to reveal a con-exclusive new poster. This, we're saying, is Gandalf making his way through The Shire away from Bag End, having just shared the details of an adventure that he's arranging. He, of course, arrived at chez Baggins neither early nor late, but exactly when he meant to. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - whatever parts of it Jackson's presentation entails - will arrive at Hall H in San Diego in the afternoon of Saturday July 14. Please Leave A Comment- Source- Empire

There were several times in the now dim and distant past (well, only a couple of years ago, really) when we thought we’d never see The Hobbit start shooting. But the cameras began cranking on March 20 last year and now Peter Jackson has posted the picture above to Facebook , marking the end of the two Hobbit movies’ long slog through production. We made it! Shoot day 266 and the end of principal photography on The Hobbit,” he wrote in a note accompanying the image. “Thanks to our fantastic cast and crew for getting us this far, and to all of you for your support! Next stop, the cutting room. Oh, and Comic Con!” Yes, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There And Back Again will now be making their way through the editing and post-production system. Though given that the first film is set for release in December, Jackson and his crew will already have started getting it ready. But for now – and assuming there aren’t pick-ups or second unit material still to be shot

Peter Jackson's The Hobbit gets a public unveiling at Comic-Con this month. Ahead of the shindig, EW has revealed new shots of Gandalf ( Ian McKellen ), Bilbo ( Martin Freeman ) and dwarves Fili, Kili, Dori and Nori, among others, embarking on their epic quest across Middle-earth. Troll readers be warned. The Hobbit is also an origin story for Glamdring, Foe-hammer, Gandalf's two-handed sword. Here it is in all its troll, orc and goblin smiting glory. Interestingly, there's also glimpses of Galadriel amongst EW's pictures. She has been recruited from the pages of Lord Of The Rings and encorporated into The Hobbit's storyline. Any excuse to watch Cate Blanchett and Hugo Weaving as Elrond is alright by us, so Jackson's promise that "it will all make sense" should keep purists at bay. Please Leave A Comment- Source- Empire