Movie-maker Peter Jackson has released a new theatrical poster for the upcoming Hobbit film coming out this December. As all J. R. R. Tolkien fans know, The Hobbit is the book preceding The Lord Of The Rings trilogy (remember the LOTR tour MissMalini went on in New Zealand in March?). It tells the tale of Bilbo Baggins embarking on an adventure with a group of dwarfs to fight the dragon Smaug, and claim the treasure he sleeps upon. It is where he first meets the infamous Gollum, and finds the One Ring, before giving it to Frodo.
Jackson is breaking the book up into two films; The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, this December and The Hobbit: There and Back Again, to follow next December. The lead role of Bilbo Baggins will be played by English actor Martin Freeman. You may recognize him as Tim Canterbury of The Office (original UK version) or as Dr. Watson from the Sherlock series (he also played the adult film star in Love Actually).
Also starring in the film will be Sir Ian McKellen, reprising his role as the wizard Gandalf. Check out the official trailer below.
Jackson released this new movie poster to build additional hype for the upcoming Comic-Con International 2012 held in San Diego each year. Tolkien fans are sure to ask Jackson many questions about the upcoming movies, particularly regarding how closely his adaptation will follow the book. Although his Lord of The Rings movie trilogy received many awards, and grossed nearly $3 BILLION at the box office, Jackson faced a lot of criticism from book purists about the chapters he left out and the random changing of scenes.
Regardless of any speculation and criticism the films are primed to be major box office hits, and I can’t wait to see the first installment. And as a special treat for any hardcore childhood fans, here’s a blast from the past… the full length animated version of The Hobbit from 1977.