Middle Earth journey continues
20 Dec 2007
New Zealand has won the battle for Middle-Earth.
Following on from the highly successful Lord of the Rings trilogy, Oscar-winning Wellington film-maker Peter Jackson, is set to make two movies based on The Hobbit.
Budgets of US$150 million (NZ$198 million) are expected for each of the two films, and film studio executives say it is likely Wellington will again be home base for Middle-Earth.
Jackson, who's been involved in a legal battle with New Line Cinemas over profits from Lord of the Rings, announced that the issue had now been resolved and pre-production will begin immediately.
He will be working in conjunction with New Line Cinema and MGM, and he and partner Fran Walsh will be the executive producers.
Filming is set down for 2009 with the two movies being shot simultaneously. It is expected that The Hobbit will be released in 2010 with the sequel following in 2011. Based on JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit, the movies will tell the story of hobbit Bilbo Baggins before the events of Lord of the Rings.
Jackson has told reporters he is very pleased to be able to continue the journney through Middle-Earth.
"I'm very pleased that we [New Line Cinemas] have been able to put our differences behind us, so that we may begin a new chapter with our old friends at New Line."
A decision has yet to be made on where the movies will be shot or who will be directing.
New Zealand's scenery and the talents of Wellington's Weta Workshop and Weta Digital have been cited as the major reasons for the success of Lord of the Rings.
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