We’ve been talking about it for months, but now it’s a done deal. Guillermo del Toro is officially the director of The Hobbit, New Line’s impending adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings prequel.
Guillermo is signed on the dotted line, and he’s moving into Peter Jackson’s basement… practically. Variety says he is literally moving to New Zealand for the next four years to be with the film’s producer Peter Jackson and the production teams at Wingnut. The Hobbit will be two movies, shot back to back in much the same manner as the three Lord of the Rings films were, which probably explains why it’s going to take four years.
Del Toro is still finishing up post-production on Hellboy 2, but it sounds like once he’s done with that he’ll be on a plane to the Kiwi kingdom. I wonder what this means for the other projects he’s been rumored to be eyeballing. For instance back in February he hinted that he might be considering a Dr. Strange movie. Presumably, anything that isn’t The Hobbit or The Hobbit 2 is now dead. Heck it’s the freakin Hobbit! Who cares about anything else. Good luck in New Zealand Guillermo, we’re rooting for you. If we can’t have Peter Jackson at the helm, Del Toro is the next best option.
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Guillermo-Del-Toro-Officially-Directing-The-Hobbit-8620.html
