Peter Jackson to direct The Hobbit?
June 28th 2010 23:31
It's every Lord of the Rings fan's dream come true (well, almost)... after the recent exit of Guillermo Del Toro as director of the upcoming two-part movie version of The Hobbit, speculation is rife that the new director will be none other than Peter Jackson himself! While the rumours are yet to be confirmed, according to deadline.com it's looking more than a bit likely that Mr Jackson will be taking on the top job himself once again.
According to Mike Fleming, who writes for deadline.com, Peter Jackson's deal is being negotiated with Warner Bros, New Line, and MGM as we speak, and that "the case is being made to MGM's owners to loosen the purse strings and make the movies happen."
Jackson himself even let the possibility of another go at directing the happenings of Middle Earth slip out, having been quoted as saying "If that's what I have to do to protect Warner Brothers' investment, then obviously that's one angle which I'll explore" by a New Zealand newspaper.
In addition to this, a slew of star directors have been considered for the high-profile and high-pressure position (including big names like Spielberg, Alfonso Cuaron, Chris Nolan, David Yates, and Bryan Singer) and yet no offer has been made. Sam Raimi, who is currently working on the World of Warcraft adaptation and the Disney film The Great and Powerful Oz, clearly already has his hands full and "would likely not return to a project for which he'd gotten passed over" (Jackson having chosen Del Toro over Raimi as the original director of The Hobbit). Other names have flown about the rumour mill but nearly a month after Del Toro quit, no replacement has been confirmed.
There are numerous financial reasons as to why Peter Jackson would be the ideal director, too - Jackson already has a considerable portion of his own estate invested in the film, he can use the soundstages and visual effects facilities that already exist from the LOTR trilogy, and as Fleming put it, "he knows the terrain better than anyone alive, having shot three installments of The Lord of the Rings during a single production stint." Given that these were epic films that later went on to gross more than $2.9 billion worldwide - as well as winning several Oscars - this is no easy feat; it's not something that could easily be replicated by anyone else but Jackson.
While this is all still speculation at this point, I'm expecting that an official announcement will be made very soon, and I'll let you know when that happens. Whether it's the logical choice of Peter Jackson or the inherently risky selection of a dark horse, only time will tell what's in store for The Hobbit.
Will he or won't he? Peter Jackson is keeping it under wraps... for now.
According to Mike Fleming, who writes for deadline.com, Peter Jackson's deal is being negotiated with Warner Bros, New Line, and MGM as we speak, and that "the case is being made to MGM's owners to loosen the purse strings and make the movies happen."
Jackson himself even let the possibility of another go at directing the happenings of Middle Earth slip out, having been quoted as saying "If that's what I have to do to protect Warner Brothers' investment, then obviously that's one angle which I'll explore" by a New Zealand newspaper.
In addition to this, a slew of star directors have been considered for the high-profile and high-pressure position (including big names like Spielberg, Alfonso Cuaron, Chris Nolan, David Yates, and Bryan Singer) and yet no offer has been made. Sam Raimi, who is currently working on the World of Warcraft adaptation and the Disney film The Great and Powerful Oz, clearly already has his hands full and "would likely not return to a project for which he'd gotten passed over" (Jackson having chosen Del Toro over Raimi as the original director of The Hobbit). Other names have flown about the rumour mill but nearly a month after Del Toro quit, no replacement has been confirmed.
There are numerous financial reasons as to why Peter Jackson would be the ideal director, too - Jackson already has a considerable portion of his own estate invested in the film, he can use the soundstages and visual effects facilities that already exist from the LOTR trilogy, and as Fleming put it, "he knows the terrain better than anyone alive, having shot three installments of The Lord of the Rings during a single production stint." Given that these were epic films that later went on to gross more than $2.9 billion worldwide - as well as winning several Oscars - this is no easy feat; it's not something that could easily be replicated by anyone else but Jackson.
While this is all still speculation at this point, I'm expecting that an official announcement will be made very soon, and I'll let you know when that happens. Whether it's the logical choice of Peter Jackson or the inherently risky selection of a dark horse, only time will tell what's in store for The Hobbit.
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