Ian McKellan

First Trailer and Poster for THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: December 20th, 2011 at 6:51 pm

Finally, the first trailer for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has been released. Peter Jackson returns to direct the adventure of young Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) who sets out on an adventure with a company of dwarves. This trailer really is like a warm embrace from an old friend. While most trailers this far out from release show very little in the way of footage, Jackson shows off a great deal. Freeman looks excellent as Bilbo, the dwarves are fantastic (they sing!), and the tag brought a big smile to my face. While a year is a very long time to wait, this snippet is a swell look into the wonder to come.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer. The film also stars Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, Andy Serkis, Luke Evans, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, and Stephen Fry.  The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be released on December 14, 2012.

First Images from THE HOBBIT Feature Martin Freeman as Bilbo and Ian McKellan as Gandalf

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: June 23rd, 2011 at 8:13 am

The first images from Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit have been released. We get our first look at Martin Freeman as Bilbo, as well as a look at Ian McKellan as Gandalf (nostalgia swoon). Freeman looks perfect, and seeing McKellan in his Gandalf garb again instills an immediate need to revisit The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Also included in the batch is a set image featuring Jackson and Freeman.

Hit the jump to check out the images. The two-part film is currently shooting in New Zealand and stars Freeman, McKellan, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, Andy Serkis, Luke Evans, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly and Stephen Fry. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be released on December 14^th, 2012, with The Hobbit: There and Back Again hitting theaters on December 13^th, 2013. 

Martin Freeman, Michael Fassbender, David Tennant, and James Nesbit in Talks for THE HOBBIT; Ian McKellan and Andy Serkis Expected to Return

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: October 16th, 2010 at 11:59 am

Production on The Hobbit yesterday took its most decisive step forward in ages: Peter Jackson finalizing his deal to direct both parts (in 3D, natch), with filming slated for February.  Of course, they’ll an actor or two to throw in front of the camera, so casting is starting to heat up.  Martin Freeman (The Office) recently spoke about his status as the frontrunner to play Bilbo Baggins (schedule pending), stating “If something could be worked out, that would be great.”  With the film going forward in a more official capacity, Deadline confirms that Freeman in the lead is a pretty good bet.

David Tennant (Doctor Who) was once rumored as a Bilbo candidate, but is now talking to the studio about a different role.  Likewise, an offer is out to James Nesbit (Match Point) — Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds) is also on the producers’ wishlist.  Ian McKellan and Andy Serkis are expected to reprise their roles as Gandalf and Gollum, respectively.  Hit the jump for a synopsis of the book.

Sir Ian McKellan Addresses THE HOBBIT Delay

by Ramses Flores    Posted: May 3rd, 2010 at 11:26 am

There have been rumors that The Hobbit was having problems for awhile now, but seeing as WB announced the first Hobbit movie for December 2012 and the second for December 2013 last week, it looks like things are finally moving forward.  Matt did a good job summing up where we currently are with the two-part film here.

However, What’s Playing (via LatinoReview) found some recent quotes from Sir Ian McKellan where he confirms that he expected to start working on the first of the two Hobbit movies a few weeks ago.  You can read what he had to say about The Hobbit after the jump.

Peter Jackson Says THE HOBBIT Hasn’t Been Delayed Because It’s Never Been Greenlit

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: April 16th, 2010 at 2:30 pm

Peter Jackson doesn’t like it when people say The Hobbit has been delayed because it’s never been officially greenlit by MGM.  In an interview with Moviefone [via ComingSoon], Jackson said:

Well, it’s not really been delayed, because we’ve never announced the date. I mean it’s sort of interesting because the studio [MGM] has never greenlit ‘The Hobbit,’ so therefore ‘The Hobbit’ has never been officially announced as a “go” project, nor have we ever announced a date. But there’s so much interest that people — newspapers and magazines, of their own account, say, ah, it’s likely to film in May, it’s likely to film in June, it’s likely to film in September. People make this stuff up. And then if it’s not filming in June, you get a story saying, “‘The Hobbit’s’ been delayed.” But it’s never actually been announced.

Hit the jump to go back to our previous stories and see that he’s right.  Jackson also provides updates on the current state of the production and when he hopes they can start shooting.

THE PRISONER DVD Review

by Scott Wampler    Posted: April 10th, 2010 at 7:08 am

AMC’s remake of the 1960′s TV series The Prisoner was always going to face an uphill battle with fans of the original series.  The Patrick McGoohan version is one of the most beloved cult TV series of all time, right up there with Twin Peaks or Lost (the latter of which The Prisoner shares a lot of themes and imagery with).  When the remake arrived on AMC last year, the reviews were largely middle-of-the-road, with ratings to match. The remake has just arrived on DVD, so is it worth your time?  Find out after the jump:

THE HOBBIT Filming Delayed until End of Year; MGM Debt Possible Culprit

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: March 28th, 2010 at 10:59 pm

Filming on Guillermo Del Toro’s The Hobbit has been delayed until the end of the year.  Andy Serkis (who played Gollum in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and will return for The Hobbit) told The Digital Spy [via The Playlist] that filming is set to begin, “At some point towards the end of this year, I expect it’ll start kicking off.”  Ian McKellan, who will also be returning, originally said on his website that he believed filming would begin in July, but has changed it to “at a time to be announced.”

The reason for the delay?  It could be MGM’s dire financial straits.  Hit the jump for more.

Casting Info for THE HOBBIT Revealed

by Kevin Mahadeo    Posted: January 4th, 2010 at 3:56 pm

Want to play the bravest little hobbit of them all in the big-screen adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit? Well, now is your chance as Spoiler TV has revealed the official casting call for the upcoming two-part film directed by Guillermo Del Toro and executive produced by Sir Peter Jackson.

Despite initially being plagued by hardships, lawsuits and corporate shenanigans, production of The Hobbit continues full steam with actor Ian McKellen already signed on to reprise his role of Gandalf from Jackson’s award-winning Lord of the Rings trilogy. Fellow Rings cast members Hugo Weaving and Andy Serkis will also return as Elrond and Gollum, respectively. Still missing, however, is the lead role of Bilbo Baggins and pretty much everyone else. But with the casting call now out, Del Toro just might stay on schedule and achieve the current release date of December 2011 for part one, with part two set for release the following year.

Hit the jump for some highlights and thoughts on the revealed casting call.

THE PRISONER The Complete Series Blu-ray Review

by Andre Dellamorte    Posted: December 13th, 2009 at 7:43 am

Leave it to the British to invent the cult television show. The Prisoner is the very definition of such sensations that have come to represent so much of TV-DVD collecting. Running seventeen episodes, it was a show I first found on PBS on Saturday nights while waiting for Saturday Night Live, and then once I entered High School was steered to it by friends as the local library had all the episodes on tape in the old, puffy clam-shell boxes. Later, a friend left me all his tapes to hold on to as he moved around the country, reclaiming them a year or two later. Then came the DVD box set, and now the Blu-ray edition. My review of The Prisoner after the jump.

Check out the First Promo for AMC’s Remake of THE PRISONER

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: June 1st, 2009 at 1:29 pm

I caught this promo for AMC’s mini-series remake of the cult classic 1960s BBC series, “The Prisoner, last night while I was watching the season finale of “Breaking Bad” (one of the best shows on television; watch it ASAP) and while it’s brief, shows almost nothing, and doesn’t even reference the original, it does let you know that personality vacuum that is Jim Caviezel is in it along with the great Ian McKellan.  I’m going to tune in just for McKellan because it’s good to see that dude since he’s only done voice work and stage plays since “X-Men: The Last Stand”.  However, no matter the quality of this mini-series, AMC deserves some love for allowing you to watch all the episodes of the original series right here.

For those who don’t know about the original, it’s about a spy (“No. 6″) who’s just turned in his walking papers when he is abducted to “The Village”.  There, he is a prisoner (Hey!  That’s the name of the show!) in a Kafka-esque world of unnamed citizens and giant, threatening ping-pong balls.  It’s worth a watch.

Check out the promo after the jump.  AMC’s mini-series debuts this November.

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