I read that there's a possibility Bill Nighy could voice Smaug.. I think that's an awesome idea. :)
Bill Nighy is awesome.
ShadowDancerWhen I say, "Why aye, gadgie," in my heart I say, "Och aye, laddie."London, UK
Bill Nighy is indeed awesome....but as the voice of a dragon? I dunno, I'm not sure that would work, for me anyway. Still, he should definitely have some role in it :)
New Zealand, filmmakers reach agreement on 'Hobbit' movies
(CNN) -- The New Zealand government said Wednesday it has reached an agreement with filmmaker Peter Jackson and Warner Bros studios to ensure that the "Hobbit" movies will be made in the country.
A labor dispute between the filmmakers and New Zealand actors had threatened to derail the $500-million project from being shot there.
There are very few human sized characters in The Hobbit, so it's probably easier for them to cast regular people for the dwarves and hobbits and use camera tricks to make Gandalf, Elrond etc appear taller. It's just the opposite approach taken for the LOTR films :)
ShadowDancerWhen I say, "Why aye, gadgie," in my heart I say, "Och aye, laddie."London, UK
Indeed. Speaking of Gandalf, Ian McKellan says he hasn't been contracted for it yet. They'd better! It won't be nearly as good without him!
So with all the latest casting news. i'm suprised this thread hasn't popped back up.
So Ian will be back as Gandalf, Andy will be back as Gollum, and if he is healthy Lee will be back as Saruman.
But also Elija Wood will be back as Frodo, Orlando Bloom will be back as Legolas and Kate Blanchette will be back as Galadriel (all characters not specifically mentioned in the book)
I guess the only one left would be Hugo Weaving as Elrond.
ShadowDancerWhen I say, "Why aye, gadgie," in my heart I say, "Och aye, laddie."London, UK
Excellent news about Gandalf. It just wouldnt have been the same without him
heh, I was a little upset at first that they were including characters from LOTR not specifically in The Hobbit, but when i found out how they were doing it I was ok with it.
My observation is these characters that shouldn't be returning were all on the ship at the end leaving for the Grey Havens.
ShadowDancerWhen I say, "Why aye, gadgie," in my heart I say, "Och aye, laddie."London, UK
From what I've heard, this would be before they set off for the Grey Havens. I can see many of them being worked into the story however, as opposed to being there 'reading' it before embarking
RubberEagleWhat's a rubber eagle used for, anyway?
well, there's two things:
Legolas and Saruman probably play into what Gandalf was doing when he was "away" during the hobbit (the necromancer in mirkwood-story)
And for old-bilbo and Frodo, i've got the impression that they might be used as a framing device (Bilbo shows frodo his book or tells him about his travels). (There's the possibility, if this sucks, that it will be cut without having any negative impact on the film(s))
Close, The movie will start off with Frodo reading from the Red Book of Westmarch (which contains both There and Back Again, and The Lord of the Rings) actually let me just post the text of the best explination i've seen yet...
"I have been following the casting of The Hobbit, and I don't get it. Cate Blanchett, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom—they're all going to be in the movie, but none of their characters are in that book! It's blasphemy.
—Kio, via the inbox
Sit down, my son, for I am about to outnerd you on such an epic scale that your ears will ring evermore like the echoes of Horn of Gondor. According to Middle Earth scholars—oh yes, I hath dug them up—Hobbit director Peter Jackson knows very much what he's doing...
In fact, his interpretation of The Hobbit may be more accurate than mainstream quasi-nerds will ever give him credit for. Yes, technically, Blanchett's elven queen appears only in The Lord of the Rings trilogy; ditto with Legolas, who is played by Bloom, and Frodo Baggins, aka Elijah Wood.
But according to Corey Olsen, who teaches J.R.R. Tolkien and medieval literature at Washington College in Maryland, all three of those characters are, actually, very much a part of The Hobbit story.
Proof? You got it. We'll start with a key plot point in The Hobbit: A big fight known as the Battle of the Five Armies. One of the characters who brings the hurt during that battle is the elven king of Mirkwood. And according to Middle Earth lore, that king has an adult son.
That's right: Legolas. So, even though Legolas is years away from lending his bow in the fight against Sauron—and even though he gets nary a mention in The Hobbit—there's no reason he wouldn't be slinging arrows in the Battle of the Five Armies.
"The idea that the king would go to war and the son would not be there? Legolas must be there," Olsen reveals. "Otherwise it would be a violation of the integrity of the story. You would have to invent a reason for Legolas of be out of town that day."
Indeed. And don't let his long Blake Lively coif fool you; Legolas is no coward. He loves peace, but he also does seem to like getting his war on.
On to Galadriel, the elven queen played by Blanchett. Again, no mention of her in The Hobbit. But at one point in that story, the wizard Gandalf disappears on a mysterious errand. It's later revealed that he was attending a key meeting with a powerful group called the White Council.
Guess who's on the council.
Given that info, Olsen says, "not only is it not a stretch" to include Galadriel in the upcoming movie, but, really, "you can't get around it."
Finally: Frodo. This casting decision seems like the hardest to explain. After all, Frodo isn't even supposed to be born when Bilbo has his big burglar adventure. But look closer: in the Middle Earth universe, the only way the world really learns about Bilbo's story is through a tome called The Red Book of Westmarch. And guess who was charged with maintaining and updating that tale.
Sense a pattern here? So do other fans. Per reports on the fan site TheOneRing.net, Jackson plans to use Frodo in The Hobbit's opening scenes as a sort of bridge into this prequel, perhaps showing him with this book, or, at least, recalling the story his uncle Bilbo first recorded."
Very interesting! Definitely looking forward to the Hobbit.
One hope I have is that the movies carry a bit of the lighter feel that the book does (relative to the LOTR anyway). I'd like to be able to share this movie with my daughter and if it goes the way of LOTR, it would likely be too dark.
I am so humbled and impressed by Sir Christopher Lee, I dont have words for it. For a man of his age to dedicate that amount of time for his art and for his passion. Its enormous. Thank you Sir!
The Hobbit shoot delayed again as Peter Jackson admitted to hospital
Oscar-winning director's perforated stomach ulcer is latest setback for crisis-hit shoot due to start in mid-February
The Oscar-winning film-maker Sir Peter Jackson has been admitted to hospital in New Zealand for surgery that will further delay filming of his forthcoming two-part adaptation of JRR Tolkien's fantasy tale The Hobbit
Jackson complained of acute stomach pains earlier this week, which were diagnosed as a perforated ulcer. His condition is not serious but his admission to the Wellington hospital yesterday is just the latest delay for a project which has been stymied by funding problems and a highly publicised industrial dispute.
Comments
I only know Freeman and Armatage, happy with both of them in their roles.
Worf
Bill Nighy is awesome.
New Zealand, filmmakers reach agreement on 'Hobbit' movies
(CNN) -- The New Zealand government said Wednesday it has reached an agreement with filmmaker Peter Jackson and Warner Bros studios to ensure that the "Hobbit" movies will be made in the country.
A labor dispute between the filmmakers and New Zealand actors had threatened to derail the $500-million project from being shot there.
So Ian will be back as Gandalf, Andy will be back as Gollum, and if he is healthy Lee will be back as Saruman.
But also Elija Wood will be back as Frodo, Orlando Bloom will be back as Legolas and Kate Blanchette will be back as Galadriel (all characters not specifically mentioned in the book)
I guess the only one left would be Hugo Weaving as Elrond.
My observation is these characters that shouldn't be returning were all on the ship at the end leaving for the Grey Havens.
Legolas and Saruman probably play into what Gandalf was doing when he was "away" during the hobbit (the necromancer in mirkwood-story)
And for old-bilbo and Frodo, i've got the impression that they might be used as a framing device (Bilbo shows frodo his book or tells him about his travels). (There's the possibility, if this sucks, that it will be cut without having any negative impact on the film(s))
"I have been following the casting of The Hobbit, and I don't get it. Cate Blanchett, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom—they're all going to be in the movie, but none of their characters are in that book! It's blasphemy.
—Kio, via the inbox
Sit down, my son, for I am about to outnerd you on such an epic scale that your ears will ring evermore like the echoes of Horn of Gondor. According to Middle Earth scholars—oh yes, I hath dug them up—Hobbit director Peter Jackson knows very much what he's doing...
In fact, his interpretation of The Hobbit may be more accurate than mainstream quasi-nerds will ever give him credit for. Yes, technically, Blanchett's elven queen appears only in The Lord of the Rings trilogy; ditto with Legolas, who is played by Bloom, and Frodo Baggins, aka Elijah Wood.
But according to Corey Olsen, who teaches J.R.R. Tolkien and medieval literature at Washington College in Maryland, all three of those characters are, actually, very much a part of The Hobbit story.
Proof? You got it. We'll start with a key plot point in The Hobbit: A big fight known as the Battle of the Five Armies. One of the characters who brings the hurt during that battle is the elven king of Mirkwood. And according to Middle Earth lore, that king has an adult son.
That's right: Legolas. So, even though Legolas is years away from lending his bow in the fight against Sauron—and even though he gets nary a mention in The Hobbit—there's no reason he wouldn't be slinging arrows in the Battle of the Five Armies.
"The idea that the king would go to war and the son would not be there? Legolas must be there," Olsen reveals. "Otherwise it would be a violation of the integrity of the story. You would have to invent a reason for Legolas of be out of town that day."
Indeed. And don't let his long Blake Lively coif fool you; Legolas is no coward. He loves peace, but he also does seem to like getting his war on.
On to Galadriel, the elven queen played by Blanchett. Again, no mention of her in The Hobbit. But at one point in that story, the wizard Gandalf disappears on a mysterious errand. It's later revealed that he was attending a key meeting with a powerful group called the White Council.
Guess who's on the council.
Given that info, Olsen says, "not only is it not a stretch" to include Galadriel in the upcoming movie, but, really, "you can't get around it."
Finally: Frodo. This casting decision seems like the hardest to explain. After all, Frodo isn't even supposed to be born when Bilbo has his big burglar adventure. But look closer: in the Middle Earth universe, the only way the world really learns about Bilbo's story is through a tome called The Red Book of Westmarch. And guess who was charged with maintaining and updating that tale.
Sense a pattern here? So do other fans. Per reports on the fan site TheOneRing.net, Jackson plans to use Frodo in The Hobbit's opening scenes as a sort of bridge into this prequel, perhaps showing him with this book, or, at least, recalling the story his uncle Bilbo first recorded."
One hope I have is that the movies carry a bit of the lighter feel that the book does (relative to the LOTR anyway). I'd like to be able to share this movie with my daughter and if it goes the way of LOTR, it would likely be too dark.
Jake
The Hobbit shoot delayed again as Peter Jackson admitted to hospital
Oscar-winning director's perforated stomach ulcer is latest setback for crisis-hit shoot due to start in mid-February
The Oscar-winning film-maker Sir Peter Jackson has been admitted to hospital in New Zealand for surgery that will further delay filming of his forthcoming two-part adaptation of JRR Tolkien's fantasy tale The Hobbit
Jackson complained of acute stomach pains earlier this week, which were diagnosed as a perforated ulcer. His condition is not serious but his admission to the Wellington hospital yesterday is just the latest delay for a project which has been stymied by funding problems and a highly publicised industrial dispute.
[url]http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/jan/27/hobbit-delay-peter-jackson-hospital[/url]