McKellen Confirms Hobbit Habit
Sir Ian McKellen is going there and back again.
The acclaimed British thespian, who, as the wizard Gandalf the Grey, helped shepherd Frodo Baggins through a perilous journey in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, has announced he will reprise his Academy Award-nominated role for the hugely anticipated Hobbit prequels.
"Yes, it's true," McKellen told Britain's Empire movie magazine. "It's not a part that you turn down. I love playing Gandalf."
The twin films will be based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, which of course he published before his epic Lord of the Rings cycle.
This time around, however, the 68-year-old McKellen will team up with Jackson's bespectacled stand-in, Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth), who announced last week that he was moving to New Zealand for four years to take the reins on the project.
Jackson and longtime partner Fran Walsh, who already have their hands full adapting the beloved Tintin to the big screen, among other films in the pipeline, will serve as executive producers on the Hobbit flicks and collaborate with del Toro to ensure proper continuity with their Oscar-winning LOTR.
The first Hobbit movie will follow the story of Frodo's uncle, Bilbo Baggins (played in the LOTR films by Sir Ian Holm), as he journeys with a group of dwarves to a dragon's lair to recover stolen treasure. The second will mine material from Tolkien's appendices about the 60 years between The Hobbit and the start of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
McKellen added that he was excited to be working with the Mexican-born helmer, who's beginning to work on the scripts.
"I spoke to Guillermo in the very room that Peter Jackson offered me the part, and he confirmed that I would be reprising the role," Sir Ian said. "As to how it's going to work over two films and what's going to happen onscreen, well, Guillermo has not got down to working out the major details yetI can tell you it's going to be amazing though."
Talking to the fansite TheOneRing.net, del Toro confirmed McKellen's casting as well as that of Andy Serkis, who's once again aboard to play Gollum. Serkis, in fact, has added The Hobbit to his list of upcoming films on his official Website, just after Jackson's Tintin.
Filming on the Hobbit movies is set to get under way in 2009, with the films unspooling in 2010 and 2011.
Rumor Watch: James McAvoy as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit?
Rumor has it that James McAvoy will play Bilbo Baggins in Guillermo del Toro’s The Hobbit. A source tells British newspaper the Daily Express:
“A number of names have been doing the rounds, including Daniel Radcliffe and Jack Black, but James (MCAvoy) is the one the film’s bosses really want. They’re expected to have talks soon so hopefully it could be confirmed in the not too distant future.”
Daniel Radcliffe? Jack Black? Really? The Daily Express isn’t exactly the most accurate source of information and these names seem more random than believable. In Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings, Baggins was played by Ian Holm. Guillermo said in an online chat last week that he still has plans to utilize Ian Holm “in some fashion for sure” and that “the difficulty of the role will be better assessed after” the screenplays are completed. del Toro told Empire Magazine last week:
“We are writing based on [Ian Holm’s performance], but other than that, we have ideas [of who could play him],” Del Toro told us. “I can tell you that it’s down to a few names that we all agree upon. And that our first choice…completely, magically, we said the same name. All of us!”
del Toro also said that we can expect “at least a year before we announce any casting”. So true or not true, don’t expect an official selection for a while.
Both Peter Jackson And Guillermo del Toro Want Martin Freeman As Their Bilbo!
…well they didn’t actually say his name, but its pretty obvious! (I think)
Guillermo del Toro spoke to Empire magazine recently and revealed that both him and Peter Jackson have mutually agreed on their choice for who should step into the shoes of Ian Holm and lead the film as Bilbo Baggins.
“I can tell you that it’s down to a few names that we all agree upon. And that our first choice…completely, magically, we said the same name. All of us!”
“We said this is the guy we would talk to, but until the pages are there you have to let the character tell you who he wants to be played by…”
The reasons I want and think Martin Freeman should play Bilbo are:
A) He looks like a Hobbit (no offence to him)
B) He looks like Ian Holm
C) He auditioned for the villain role in Jackson’s upcoming drama The Lovely Bones but ultimately lost out to Stanley Tucci, therefore Peter Jackson does know of his existence.
Everyone across the internet thinks that Martian Freeman would make a perfect Bilbo Baggins, so if Peter and Guillermo have someone else in mind then he must be even better than Freeman, which will be tough. Maybe there is someone we haven’t noticed yet. However, we wont find out who they have in mind as according to Guillermo:
“You can expect at least a year before we announce any casting.”
Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis in Talks for The Hobbit
Guillermo del Toro will enter pre-production on the two-film big screen adaptation of The Hobbit after Hellboy II: The Golden Army hits theaters in July. Variety reports that Warner Bros has already had “preliminary contact” with three actors from Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy about reprising their roles for the upcoming prequels:
- Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn)
- Ian McKellen (Gandalf)
- Andy Serkis (Gollum).
Guillermo promises that he is doing everything in his power to bring all the original team back.
“We will all be involved in the script in some fashion but the exact definition is about a week away,” del Toro told the trades. “I am all for keeping the actors who originated the parts, as much as availability and their willingness will allow.”
Basically, del Toro knows he needs to please the fans, first and foremost. It should be noted that on May 24th, WETA will be hosting a one-hour live online chat with Jackson and del Toro to answer the 20 most asked fan questions/concerns. Smart move.
Previously
Serkis lists The Hobbit on his upcoming production calendar on his official website and last month McKellen confirmed to Empire Magazine that he will return.
“Yes, it’s true. I spoke to Guillermo in the very room that Peter Jackson offered me the part, and he confirmed that I would be reprising the role. Obviously, it’s not a part that you turn down; I loved playing Gandalf.”
No word on Ian Holm who played an older Bilbo Baggins in Fellowship, will likely be recast as he is getting too old (76) to play the part.