Hobbit Director del Toro Talks Cast, Creatures
The two movies based on the Lord of the Rings prequel, The Hobbit, may be a long ways offhang on until 2011 and 2012, nerds!but they’re pretty much all Mexican director Guillermo del Toro gets to talk about these days. Sure, he’s out promoting this summer’s comic book flick Hellboy II: The Golden Army, but, like, what’s up with Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf and that dragon?
We got the big scoop from del Toro himself at the Saturn Awards, where he received a lifetime achievement award. Here’s what he told us about The Hobbit’s casting, creatures and story:
First of all, expect some crazy new creatures. If you’ve seen Hellboy or his epic Pan’s Labyrinth, you know del Toro would go beyond Orcs and talking trees. He promises to respect J.R.R. Tolkien’s and Peter Jackson’s creations, but sees many more new ones. “I plan to bring myself to The Hobbit,” he said. “No doubt about that.”
So what’s he working on? Well, you know those creepily talented kids who sit alone in the corner drawing in notebooks? That’s del Toro. He sketches all his magical beings in personal notebooks, but now the studio wants to own his ideas. So until all the paperwork is done, “it will be sketched on napkins, or it’ll be sketched on loose pieces of paper.”
And even though The Hobbit was Tolkien’s tot-sized adventure, the film version will not be The Lord of the Rings for Kids. “Tolkien had, in the last third of the bookI wouldn’t say an edge, but had a somber tone that normally would not conjure the term ’family.’”
And what about the cast? Who’s gonna be the next Viggo Mortensen? Well, Gandalf is already locked up, as Ian McKellen has agreed to pick up his wizard’s staff again. But the rest of the roles are wide open, despite what you hear about James McAvoy or anyone else.
“We’ll cast whoever seems to fit the pages,” del Toro said. Wannabe Hobbits may have to chase him down to New Zealand, though, where he’ll be spending much of the rest of the year, checking in with the creature designs and the Middle Earth set.
“For me,” he said, “it’s like commuting to Burbank.”
Get Hellboy II: The Golden Army trailers, clips and more in the Summer Movie Guide
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.
David Goyer to direct Magneto Movie
Blade series helmer David Goyer has signed on to direct the X-Men spinoff film Magneto, for 20th Century Fox. Goyer will develop the 2004 screenplay written by Sheldon Turner. The script included Professor X, a soldier in the Allied Forces who helps liberate Nazi concentration camps who meets Magneto after the war. They find a bond with their mutant powers, but their moral differences drive them apart. The film would take place in the 1940’s and 1950’s. The plan was for the film to explore the “psychological roots” of Magneto, kinda like Hannibal Rising did for Hannibal Lecter. And we all know how that film turned out. I’m not sure if this spin-off prequel is a good idea.
Sir Ian McKellen’s participation will be limited. McKellen has said that he would portray the character in Magneto, using the de-aging technology that was applied to him and Patrick Stewart in X-Men: The Last Stand for some of the film. We assume it would either be done using flashbacks or at the end of the story.
Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, Magneto first appeared in X-Men #1 in September 1963. The character has been the X-Men’s primary antagonist since. Depicted as one of the most powerful mutants in the Marvel Universe, he possesses the ability to control magnetism. He is also one of the most morally complex characters in comic book history. A Jewish Holocaust survivor, his actions are driven by the purpose of protecting the mutant race from suffering a similar fate. While his militant actions have made him unpopular with humans, many mutants have come to view him as a savior. He has led several teams against the X-Men, including the Brotherhood of Mutants and the Acolytes.
Liv Tyler Talks The Hobbit
We’ve heard from Ian McKellen, he’s on board. Elijah Wood said he would return if needed, as did Cate Blanchett and Andy Serkis. Among the rest of that cast we haven’t heard from is Liv Tyler, who played elf Arwen in the Lord of the Rings. Would she return to play her character in the upcoming Hobbit films? IGN spoke to her while she was promoting The Strangers.
“Somebody just said to me, ‘Has your agent called Peter Jackson yet?’” laughs the actress. “And I was like, ‘Whoa. What are you talking about?’ [The reporter] was so aggressive. It’s so funny the way people think and see [these things]. Someone just told me now that [director] Guillermo del Toro was doing it and that they’re going to split it into two films, which will be The Hobbit plus some sort of a bridge to The Lord of the Rings. As far as I know, Arwen and Aragorn are not in The Hobbit, or definitely aren’t in it. But I don’t know yet.”
While Tyler points out that Arwen does not show up in the book version of The Hobbit, the so-called bridge film could be another matter altogether.
“It’s very interesting and I guess I should try to find out,” she says. “I’m curious because there were all those other books like The Silmarillion. And the appendix, that’s where they got the whole idea for my part, just from the appendix. There’s so much other amazing stuff.”
She says she is definitely onboard for a return appearance if del Toro and producer Peter Jackson invite her.
“Oh, are you kidding?” she says when asked. “In a heartbeat! I’ll buy my own ticket and be on the plane in a second. I mean, that was a magical experience and it was just a once in a lifetime, amazing [thing]. Because it was so like… we knew and we didn’t know that it was sort of something that had never been done before, and there was this feeling that was really gung-ho. Like, ‘O.K., let’s go off together!’ And we just rolled our sleeves up. It really was this amazing, crazy, special thing.”