Jackson, del Toro to Write Hobbit Films
Peter Jackson by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Peter Jackson and
Guillermo del Toro have found the perfect writers for
The Hobbit and its sequel - themselves.
Del Toro, who is directing the movies, will work with the
Lord of the Rings filmmaker and
Hobbit executive producer to adapt the J.R.R. Tolkien book and write its companion film, according to
The Hollywood Reporter.
Other writers include Jackson's wife Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, both of whom collaborated with Jackson on the
Rings trilogy.
The two auteurs spent eight months searching for a writer to adapt the literary classic. When Jackson and New Line settled their differences over profit participation in the
Rings films, the Oscar winner said he would not pen the
Hobbit movies because of other commitments.
While looking for another writer, however, Jackson and del Toro found openings in their schdules, realized how much they loved the material, and decided there was no time to bring in someone unfamiliar with Middle Earth.
Tolkien wrote
The Hobbit for his children, years before the
Rings trilogy. It tells the story of young Bilbo Baggins, who joins the wizard Gandalf on a journey for treasure involving trolls, humans, Gollum and his ring of invisibility, and a dragon named Smaug.
Like the
LOTR flicks, the
Hobbit films will be shot simultaneously, with production tentatively set to start in late 2009. New Line and MGM are targeting a 2011 release for
The Hobbit and a 2012 one for its sequel.
