General Discussion

If there is anyone in Hollywood who can make this stupid split-a-book-into-two-or-three-films-for-more-$$$ fad work, it's Jackson. He really loves the source material and wants to do it justice. I would feel alright if he does decide to do this.

I got to say I'm with the naysayers on this one. I already thought it was a stretch to split the book into 2 parts, going into the appendixes to scrape out another movie just feels like overkill to me.

Can the movie just come out already?

I've read the hobbit, as well as the lord of the rings. I found the hobbit to be pretty boring and definitely not long enough for three films.

Will not watch

It's just a matter of getting more cash out of it. Trilogies used to be something special, now everything that generates enough money has to become a trilogy; This is not a surprise.

Ian Mckellen just confirmed it on twitter. Three films will be made.

Jackson just confirmed it as well. Here's his statement:

"It is only at the end of a shoot that you finally get the chance to sit down and have a look at the film you have made. Recently Fran, Phil and I did just this when we watched for the first time an early cut of the first movie - and a large chunk of the second. We were really pleased with the way the story was coming together, in particular, the strength of the characters and the cast who have brought them to life. All of which gave rise to a simple question: do we take this chance to tell more of the tale? And the answer from our perspective as the filmmakers, and as fans, was an unreserved ‘yes.'

We know how much of the story of Bilbo Baggins, the Wizard Gandalf, the Dwarves of Erebor, the rise of the Necromancer, and the Battle of Dol Guldur will remain untold if we do not take this chance. The richness of the story of The Hobbit, as well as some of the related material in the appendices of The Lord of the Rings, allows us to tell the full story of the adventures of Bilbo Baggins and the part he played in the sometimes dangerous, but at all times exciting, history of Middle-earth.

So, without further ado and on behalf of New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Wingnut Films, and the entire cast and crew of “The Hobbit” films, I’d like to announce that two films will become three.

It has been an unexpected journey indeed, and in the words of Professor Tolkien himself, "a tale that grew in the telling."

Cheers,

Peter J"

So are all the movies still going to be 3 hours long? I mean, come on, The Hobbit is a 300 page book (as compared to the Lord of the Rings which is, totally, 1000+ pages), so (not counting appendices stuff) we are going to get almost 2 minutes of film per page if the movies are roughly the same length. It will take less time to read the book than it will to watch the movies.