According to Movieweb, actor Orlando Bloom will reportedly rake in US $1 million to reprise his role as Legolas in the upcoming The Hobbit movies! It might not sound like much by movie-star standards, but Bloom will reportedly be on screen for less than 2 minutes, making for a pretty impressive per-minute rate—and, reportedly, he’ll rake in more than Hobbit leads Robert Kazinsky and Aidan Turner (who’ll play Bilbo Baggins’ sidekicks Fili and Kili) combined.

Do you think US$1 million for 2 minutes of screen time is too much?

Thanks CB!

The Hobbit is becoming more like a reunion of The Lord of the Rings stars than a prequel. Actors Elijah Wood (Frodo Baggings), Ian McKellen (Gandalf), Andy Serkis (Gollum) and Cate Blanchett (Galadriel) are all back for their reprisals in the two-part prequel. Also, actors Orlando Bloom (Legolas) and Christopher Lee (Saruman) are negotiating to reprise their roles in the film:

“I haven’t even the script,” said Wood to The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s going to be like going back in time. There only would have been reservation about taking the part if there had been something that had infringed upon the integrity of the original book, but that was never going to be the case.

The movie is currently under production in New Zealand and being directed by Peter Jackson

Thanks LR!

Why did it take the man behind Gandalf so long to commit officially to The Hobbit? In a surprisingly candid post on his official ebsite, Ian McKellen spoke about behind-the-scenes developments and his own ambivalence surrounding the two-part project.

Could I let Gandalf go? Would anyone else care if I did?” he wrote, going on to cite the example of the “Harry Potter” franchise. “Elsewhere, does anyone care that Michael Gambon was not the first to play Dumbledore?

The issue all along was not whether he still feels creatively energized by Gandalf. Rather, the sticking point was simply that the production faced delay after delay and, as the 71-year-old McKellen put it:

All I had to decide was what to do with the time that is given me.

First, producer Peter Jackson and director Guillermo del Toro struggled to get the production off the ground as MGM faced severe financial difficulties, and then a planned date to begin shooting early last year came and went. Del Toro departed the project, Jackson stepped in to direct and the production faced a dustup with New Zealand’s trade union. The prospect of shooting outside that country bubbled up.

All the while, McKellen remained fascinated with the scripts:

It was true to the style, the fun and the romance of the trilogy. Yet when the production finally got back on track, with Martin Freeman taking on the starring role of Bilbo and a February 2011 date set to begin filming, McKellen still found himself unsure. I kept wondering was Gandalf what I most wanted to do, more than a new play for instance or indeed a new part?. Sequels aren’t necessarily as rewarding to act in as their originals.

The deciding negotiation was not about money but about dates. Gandalf is needed on set over the next 18 months but with sizeable breaks when I can work on other projects. My worry that I could not easily escape from Middle Earth was lifted. I am happy to say I start filming in Wellington on February 21 2011.

It’s so good to have the original Gandalf confirmed for both parts of The Hobbit

Thanks MTV!

It has been confirmed that Elijah Wood will be returning as Frodo Baggins, the hobbit who risked everything to destroy the One Ring in Peter Jackson’s epic trilogy, in the anticipated The Hobbit movie adaptation!

Altough Frodo doesn’t appear in The Hobbit book written by the acclaimed author JRR Tolkien on which the movies will be based, (and the fact that the character wasn’t even born yet during the events depicted in the book), Wood’s appearance as Frodo in The Hobbit will be an ”organic and natural” addition to the movie mythos:

As readers of The Hobbit know, the tale of “The Downfall of The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit or There and Back Again,” are contained in the fictional “Red Book of Westmarch.” In Peter Jackson’s LOTR films, the book is shown on screen and written in by Bilbo [played by Ian Holm] and Frodo [Wood] and handed off to Sam Gamgee [Sean Astin]. (Not explained on film are Sam’s progeny later having the book and being Wardens of the Westmarch—hence the book’s title.)

The fictional book, and either the telling from it or the reading of it, will establish Frodo in the films experiencing Bilbo’s story. Viewers are to learn the tale of The Hobbit as a familiar Frodo gets the tale as well.

So, basically, Wood will appear in both chapters of The Hobbit as the reader and/or narrator of the tale being told in the movies

Thanks RC!

Since Guillermo del Toro will not direct The Hobbit, soon will be announcing a new director. Will David Yates picked?

From LeakyNews:

Harry Potter director David Yates possibly being in the running to take over the production of the film, “The Hobbit.”

Actor Matthew Goode, known as Ozymandias in Watchmen, has let slip that he auditioned for the role of Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit!

But just before we met, he’d auditioned for the role of Bilbo Baggins in Guillermo del Toro’s two-part film of The Hobbit. As he is the first to admit, he’s not an obvious choice – ‘Look at the size of me for Christ’s sake!’ If he got the part, he would, he says, find it almost impossible to refuse – despite the fact that it would involve him spending several months in New Zealand.

We are still waiting for official confirmation, but this indicates that at least the work is in progress for The Hobbit

Previously, Jackson and Del Toro had confirmed that The Hobbit would have a December 2011 release date, but unfortunately Variety has informed that Alan Horn “won’t predict when the first of the two ‘Hobbit’ films will be out, but says the most probable scenario would be a release in the fourth quarter of 2012.”

The delays arise because MGM could its rights as part of the producer restructuring. Still, New Line will work up a budget for both films and start casting soon

Actor Orlando Bloom, who played Legolas in The Lord of the Rings triology, has said that he would like to return in The Hobbit. When interviewed at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival by MTV, he said that he has approached producer Peter Jackson about possibility to return:

You know, if you want me to wear the blonde wig and to have pointly ears again, I would be honoured to do it.

However, Orlando has a small chance to repeat Legolas in The Hobbit, since his character has no role part in the original story:

It’s Guillermo’s movie and I’m a huge fan of that man. He’s obviously going to take his own idea of it, but I’m excited for that movie. I think it’s going to be great.

Let’s recall that Ian McKellan, Hugo Weaving, and Cate Blanchett are back, but we still don’t know who will play Bilbo Baggins. The scenes from the novel will be re created in The Hobbit with some additional events that make an impact to The Lord of the Rings, such as the expulsion of Sauron from Mirkwood by the White Council

The tabloid The Sun has informed recently that actor Tobey Maguire (Spiderman) is rumored to play the Bilbo Baggins role in The Hobbit. The rumours have been doing the rounds for about 1 month, indicating that both producer Peter Jackson and director Guillermo Del Toro have been chasing Maguire:

Everyone is over the moon. Tobey is not only one of the most recognisable faces in Hollywood, he is also one of the best actors.

Tobey Maguire was recently asked about the rumor and claimed he had not been approached:

I love Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson and I certainly wouldn’t take myself out of the conversation.

Aintitcool.com managed to get a reply to an email they sent Peter Jackson asking if there was anything in this latest rumor:

No truth at all, although we’re all big fans of Toby. We are currently auditioning for Bilbo, and a month or two away from any announcements.

Thanks THM!

In a new interview with iFMagazine, the legendary actor Sir Ian McKellen has confirmed his involvement with The Lord of the Rings prequel, The Hobbit, indicating:

I have been promised I’m in it.

This happened 12 hours from eating dinner with The Hobbit director Guillermo Del Toro. He also mentioned that it’s possible that he will reprise his role in X-Men Origins: Magneto, depending on the Wolverine saga development. If another Wolverine movie is created, it’s highly probable that Ian leaves the proyect.

Thanks RC!