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UPFRONTS 2013: The Overachievers 
Warner Bros and MGM Pictures jointly announced today that the final film in Peter Jackson’s trilogy adaptation of the JRR Tolkien novel is now titled The Hobbit: There and Back Again. It will be released worldwide on July 18, 2014. All three films in the trilogy are productions of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. The Studios also announced the title of the second installment in the franchise, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, which will be released on December 
13, 2013. The first film in the trilogy, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, opens this holiday season on December 14, 2012. Under Jackson’s direction, all three movies are being shot in digital 3D using the latest camera and stereo technology. Additional filming, as with principal photography, is taking place at Stone Street Studios, Wellington, and on location around New Zealand.Shot in 3D 48 frames-per-second, the film trilogy will be released in High Frame Rate (HFR) 3D, other 3D formats, IMAX, and 2D.
Dan Fellman, Warner Bros Pictures President of Domestic Distribution said in a statement, “We wanted to have a shorter gap between the second and third films of The Hobbit Trilogy. Opening in July affords us not only the perfect summer tentpole, but fans will have less time to wait for the finale of this epic adventure.”
Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, Warner Bros Pictures President of International Distribution, added, “The Hobbit: There And Back Again opening in the summer will maximize playability for what promises to be an event film for fans the world over.”
Related: Hot Blog Video: Peter Jackson’s ‘The Hobbit’
The trilogy is set in Middle-earth 60 years before Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings, which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen and whose 3rd installment won the Best Picture Oscar. The screenplay for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is credited to Fran Walsh & Philippa Boyens & Peter Jackson & Guillermo del Toro. Jackson is also producing the films, together with Carolynne Cunningham, Zane Weiner and Fran Walsh. The executive producers are Alan Horn, Toby Emmerich, Ken Kamins, and Carolyn Blackwood, with Boyens and Eileen Moran serving as co-producers. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and the two remaining films in the trilogy are productions of New Line Cinema and MGM Pictures, with New Line managing production. Warner Bros Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television licensing being handled by MGM.
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So how long before FOX move X-Men sequel?
I would have preferred all three movies in the same year. Jan 2013, June 2013, Dec 2013.
The Hobbit 1: An Unexpected Journey
The Hobbit 2: Bilbo Finally Leaves the Shire
The Hobbit 3: Trolls and Goblins!
The Hobbit 4: Gollum
The Hobbit 5: Made up Adventures by Peter Jackson and Fran
The Hobbit 6: The Elves and Unnecessary Appearances by Made Up Elves Who Weren’t In the Book
The Hobbit 7: Lonely Mountain (At Last)
The Hobbit 8: We Finally Get to See Smaug
The Hobbit 9: Preparation for the Great Battle
The Hobbit 10: The Great Battle
The Hobbit 11: There and Back Again
The Hobbit 12: The Life and Adventures of Young Aragorn
The Hobbit 13: Sauron Grows in Power
The Hobbit 14: What Mordor Really Did to Gollum
The Hobbit 15: The Pre-Fellowship of the Ring
There you are, guys, I just mapped out the next 15 years of your lives! (FYI, I’m not even going to see the first movie.)
I know some will cry out that this is just a grab for more money by the studio, but I don’t think Jackson would cut the movie into three parts if he didn’t think there was enough story or material to have it make sense. He’s talked about how they plan to use the appendicies from the LOTR novels to add more depth and context to the Hobbit in much the same way he did with LOTRs. No doubt he’ll also help set up things for the LOTR movie as well. Based on the amazing results of the first trilogy, I eagerly await these 3 new films!
Please. He didn’t cut the three MUCH LONGER books into more than one film per, and they turned out fine. He’s grabbing for $$ because his other movies have largely tanked and he wants anoter big payday. It’s ludicrous to split the book into 3 films. It would have been a stretch to make 2 movies out of “The Hobbit”. There’s just not enough in the book to support 2 films. Much less 3. This is his way of saying “I am improving on Tolkien’s work”. Completely ridiculous.
Peter Jackson is the King of Bloat. King Kong was the most self-indulgent and laughably pretentious movie I’ve seen maybe ever. Anyone else remember how it took an hour to get to the Island, while we endured terribly-scripted monolgoues on Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and other such prattle that had nothing to do with the core story whatsoever? I saw the extended film on Blu, and the padding and irrelevant action scenes finally became a kind of unintentional hilarity. So … we’re going to take a story that worked just fine as an 80 minute animated film, and we’re going to pad the thing out into a six hour trilogy? And why? Because they have access to the Appendices from Return of the King and they think it will be neat to see those stories? What do they have to do with BILBO, and his story and his growth? The destruction of Numenor has what, exactly, to do with Bilbo? Jackson, Walsh, and Boyens need to go watch JAWS again, where everything from the novel that has nothing to do with the central story is cut, so the artists can concentrate on a concise and well-structured film. Paddnig THE HOBBIT like this is the biggest self-wank I’ve seen since the days of Michael Cimino.
The book and the appendices support three movies more logically than two or one. Two would have been awkward because one of the two films would have ended up very bloated compared to the other. One film would have been either very long or cut out a lot (like the animated film arguably did). You have as potential major action set pieces the trolls encounter, Goblin Town, Gollum, Mirkwood, escape from the Elves, everything with Smaug and the treasure, and the Battle of the Five Armies. How do you fit that in one movie that doesn’t feel rushed or seem like it’s missing a lot of bridging pieces regarding Sauron, etc. to help connect the story to LOTR? The Hobbit as a trilogy fits–potentially, of course–very well into the mold of the standard movie trilogy. A single narrative thread and one main protagonist with a clear, character-defining story (journey, Smaug, battle) in each film.
What didn’t work for me was LOTR as three films. The books weren’t even originally three books–they were six. And with good reason: digesting all the detail (most of which is relevant thematically and in regard to character) simply becomes cumbersome after a while. I wouldn’t have minded six LOTR movies, but I’m not sure if Jackson is capable of that kind of very focused storytelling.
“How do you fit that in one movie that doesn’t feel rushed or seem like it’s missing a lot of bridging pieces regarding Sauron, etc. to help connect the story to LOTR?”
Easy. The only thing that truly connects the story to LOTR is the Ring. That’s all you need. You don’t NEED to see Gandalf chasing a spirit out of Mirkwood, you don’t NEED to see the man-bear shapeshifter, you don’t NEED to see the magic river which makes the fat dwarf fall asleep for days, you don’t NEED to see the Stone Giants.
Remember when Jackson made FELLOWSHIP and they cut out everything in the novel that had nothing to do with Frodo and his quest? Farmer Maggot, Tom Bombadil, the Barrow-Downs, the Fellowship attacked by wolves, etc. etc. etc.? Boy, I wish that Peter Jackson were here. But he doesn’t exist anymore. He’s now the King of Bloat, the man who took an hour to get to the island in King Long, and even longer to get off of it. We’re in for a really annoying bloated series of films, I fear.
that’s because you’re a Peter Jackson/LOTR addict.
If this was “Hunger Games” splitting the final book into three, you’d be crying and whining like a baby messing its diapers.
Nice title for the second film. Looking forward to the first one this fall and returning to Middle-earth!
“The Desolation Of Smaug”?! Really? These Kiwis are taking a massive poop on a masterpiece. JRR Tolkien is spinning in his grave.
Actually, if you’ve read “The Hobbit,” you know that “The Desolation of Smaug” comes from the illustration, “Thror’s Map.” So it’s actually a very appropriate and respectful title.
^ and a spoiler for those who are unfamiliar with the book.
It really isn’t a spoiler when a work is that well known. Even people who have not read the book usually no that a dragon is involved. Besides, saying “The Desolation of…” doesn’t really tell how the interaction with Smaug resolves. The “desolation” was a geographic place in the novel.
They’re ‘taking a poop’ on The Hobbit by using a title from the book? The Desolation of Smaug is where Smaug lives. Have you actually read The Hobbit?
Will people quit saying “cash grab!” This isn’t George Lucas we’re talking about. And as for those saying there isn’t enough material in The Hobbit to be three films, they’re also using some of the appendices from LOTR. This isn’t just The Hobbit.
Yes, actually, this is exactly like Lucas. He wants to make movies that will make him more money, and he’s justifying it by saying “There’s plenty of material for a 3rd book”. No, actually, there isn’t. If he’s basing it on the indeces from Return of the King, than he needs to make a completely separate film. If he’s basing it on material he made up out of whole cloth (My belief) then he needs to re-name it. He doesn’t get to tweak the story as he sees fit and then call it “The Hobbit”.
So, Jim, will you be heading back over here to admit it when you realize you were wrong? You act like you have some kind of firsthand knowledge when it comes to deciphering Peter Jackson’s motives, and your take is pretty cynical. For most un-jaded filmgoers the LOTR trilogy was a masterpiece and a great time at the movies. I for one will give Jackson the benefit of the doubt until he proves me wrong, and that will take me actually seeing the movies to decide. We get it, you don’t trust him, but do you really need to harp on that multiple times on this site? Give it a rest.
No, this is nothing like Lucas. As Tony rigatoni said on this comment section, there is plenty of material in The Hobbit that isn’t seen from Bilbo’s POV that can be put into the films. Add that with the appendices from ROTK that PJ is planning on doing, there is more than enough material to justify three films. Also, PJ never said “There’s plenty of material for a 3rd book”. He’s making movies. Not writing books.
^ then Jackson should at least be faithful to the books he is adapting his films from, (unless he is so bloated and egotistical now that he actually thinks he wrote the Lord of the Rings /Hobbit.) It angers me how so many macho fanboys scream bloody murder when he extends Arwen’s part in Fellowship, but then say nothing about adding ghosts in Pelinor Fields, ruining Faramir’s character in Two Towers, and having scenes of Gandalf beating the Steward of Gondor with a staff; Lord of the Rings fanboys are not only two-faced, they’re also sexist.
And regarding the changes in the upcoming Hobbits (all 900 parts,) of course I’m angry. There’s a REASON J RR Tolkien put those additional facts/scenes in the appendix: they didn’t fit anywhere else!!!! For the sake of argument, let’s say, someone collected all of Stephanie Meyer’s notes on the Twilight series. There would be more than enough to make into another film. Let me ask you macho fanboys this: would you be angry with this decision? Of course you would!
In the same manner, I curse Peter Jackson. If he’s going to make the Hobbit, make the Hobbit; don’t rape it three times over.
“And regarding the changes in the upcoming Hobbits (all 900 parts,) of course I’m angry.”
This makes it seem like you’ve seen The Hobbit. Obviously a movie you haven’t seen can’t make you angry. That’s stupid. So how did you see The Hobbit? Care to enlighten us?
Two thoughts. First, a movie is not a book. When someone crafts a movie, he/she is using visuals to tell most of the story. The first test of a film is that you should be able to watch it without dialog and get the story. A scene by scene filming of any of Tolkien’s work (i.e. using the novel as the screenplay, more or less) would not work. It would be bloated and often boring and frankly quite hard to sit through. Tolkien’s climactic moments constituted about five percent of his total pages, maybe less. But when you think about the books, you remember those “scenes” the most. A director does the same thing. Jackson doesn’t think he wrote the books, but he did make the definitive movie version of them and deserves some credit.
Second, if you’re irritated about being faithful to a book, then READ THE BOOK and don’t see the movie. Surely your imagination is much, much better than any adaptation could be. I saw the first Narnia book and hated it. Absolutely hated it. In my opinion, they got it pretty wrong. In the next two films they just took a giant dump on the books, frankly. But I stopped caring. If Jackson’s interpretation bugs you so much, just don’t watch. Right?
cash grab cash grab! There, I said it again.
And no, PJ is not another George Lucas. He’s much worse. At least George stopped after filming Episode III, just like he said he would. If George was PJ, he would have not only filmed episodes 7, 8, 9, but he would have split 9 into two sub-episodes to be released two separate years. And all in 48 (unnecessary) frames per second! So there.
Having grown up reading and loving Tolkien’s books, I can’t help but anticipate seeing what Jackson has in store for us. If this were a Lucasfilm production, the motivation for making three films would be suspect, but everything Jackson has said and done leads me to believe he really wants to make the most complete and satisfying film version of the story possible. There is a vast amount of Tolkien-created material tied to these works, and so an extended treatment of The Hobbit is well worth waiting for (though the waiting will be tough).
If Jackson were merely going for a cash grab, he wouldn’t put so much time and effort into this trilogy. You just need to look at the dreck released by the Asylum Group to see what a real cash grab is.
Having said that, I’m surprised that he can get three movies’ worth of material. So it is with some trepidation that I look forward to the movies.
The LOTR trilogy is amazing IMO but not without flaws, mostly in diversions from Tolkien’s storyline (Frodo and Sam being taken by Faramir to Osgiliath and encountering the Nazgul, sticks out like a sore thumb and taints Faramir’s character) – but overall Jackson achieved something huge and also deferential. Let’s hope The Hobbit (with Del Toro also on board, don’t forget) achieves the same result.
^ Actually, most of the time was spent in legal dealings, over which studio was going to release it. Once the rights fell to Warner Brothers, the film actually got slapped together pretty quickly, (even faster than a Star Wars film I might add.)
And the decision to make a third movie was never part of the original deal! It was just a greedy afterthought. So saying that this trilogy was hand-crafted with love and individualistic attention and care like grandma’s homemade cookies is the biggest lie I’ve heard all day.
Actually, while legal dealings were happening a lot of pre-production was happening. Del Toro did a lot of those with Jackson input. Look at the actual production times for epic films from the past, and you’d be surprised at the efficiency with which they were made. Pre-production is the time-consuming part, and if well done you can get through actual filming in a few months. Also, they filmed almost entirely in one general location, and most of the LOTR team was working together again. So, to say this was a slap-dash preparation is pretty disingenuous and baseless.
As for the third film not being part of the original deal, that part will require some re-shoots. However, anyone who knows the books can guess that the material filmed to make the original first film, then first two films, would have been more than adequate for three.
Sorry but to everyone saying it’s a cash grab to do 3 films, you really need to check your facts before posting. First of all, the Hobbit has just as much material as LOTR, however much of it isn’t seen by Bilbo and so isn’t in the book. Remember Jackson is not making a film adaptation of The Hobbit. That would be a PG movie with a 2 hour running time and aimed at people who enjoy Pixar films. I won’t say that would be a bad thing but the majority of people are expecting a Lord of the Rings’ style movie. Therefore what Jackson is making is a prequel to LOTR and expanding the scope of the movie to please all the people who enjoyed the original trilogy. The dwarves won’t be indistinguishable but instead have unique personalities, and the elves won’t be singing silly songs all day. But to do this a lot of character development, backstory, and good old dialogue has to be added, not to mention more battle scenes (if you retread the book you’ll notice there isn’t a fight scene to be found – they all happen ‘off screen’). Finally, unlike potter, twilight, and hunger games, the third movie was not planned. Jackson says in his video log that the writers watched the first rough cut of the second movie and felt the pacing was rushed and the cut was almost 4 hours long. Jackson had to fight with the studio to make the third film possible. However the films turn out calling the split a cash grab is just incorrect.
“the Hobbit has just as much material as LOTR, however much of it isn’t seen by Bilbo and so isn’t in the book.”
The Hobbit has as much material as LOTR, but none of it is in the book? I think you mean, a whole bunch of backstory and sandbox world-building by Tolkien was described in the Appendices of LOTR, but as none of it had anything to do with Bilbo’s story, Tolkien wisely left it alone and only hinted at it for the most part, and focused on the main story he was telling. Maybe Tolkien knew what he was doing by leaving all that stuff out of Bilbo’s story.
Sorry, but this is a misinterpretation. When Tolkien wrote The Hobbit, he had no idea LOTR would be written. After writing LOTR, he revised The Hobbit and also wrote the appendices. All this was done to help create a unified Middle Earth, so Jackson is perfectly justified in using Tolkien’s notes to do the same.
And, if you do re-read The Hobbit, you’ll understand that the characters often separate and have discrete experiences. Bilbo sees a relatively small slice of this, because The Hobbit was originally a children’s story requiring pretty fast pacing. For example, Bilbo is unconscious during much of the Battle of the Five Armies. Should Jackson film him being unconscious? When Gandalf leaves, he goes to do something, and this something–as is implied subtly in the book–is about the Necromancer (Sauron) and his growing threat. Bilbo experiences none of that, but personally I would find that quite helpful in linking The Hobbit to LOTR. I have many other examples
I have recently read the Hobbit — just a few months ago, in fact — and the problem with your argument is that you’re talking about “Oh, it would be neat to see this and that” instead of thinking about story structure. I know Tolkien revised The Hobbit when creating the Lord of the Rings. But he didn’t screw up the focus of the story by taking the audiences on all these side quests, now did he? And he didn’t show us all of the Battle of Five Armies because it wasn’t important to the story. Again, the King of Bloat is going to do to this what he did to King Long — pad the thing out with several unncessary action scenes that have NOTHING to do with the central focus of the story, just because “Ooh! Wouldn’t it be neat to see that?”
Hey, it would be “neat” to see what the Shark was doing during JAWS, it would be “neat” to see what Belloq was doing after he stole the idol from Indiana Jones, it would be “neat” to see Charles Foster Kane when was at boarding schools, it would be “neat” to see what Victor Lazlow was doing during Casablanca and how Rick built his nightclub, it would be “neat” to see what the Wicked Witch of the East was doing in Munchkinland before the house dropped on her and how she got the Ruby Slippers….
The King of Bloat has forggoten this crucial aspect of storytelling. It ain’t about what would be “neat” to see…it’s about what we NEED to see.
Sauron in Mirkwood during the Hobbit? Who gives a damn? He’s got nothing to do with Bilbo’s story. NOTHING. I know, I know, they’re going to try and tie in Smaug to Sauron blah blah blah. Just as they created that insanely stupid plot point in Return of the King that Arwen was growing weaker and was going to die unless Aragorn defeated Sauron. The more they screw with these stories, the worse they make them.
Jackson gave me hours and hours of enjoyment with LOTR, which in the 1960s we used to say would never be filmed. I trust he will do the same again. I am very much a fan of the Tolkien books but I am not a purist. Jackson knocks himself out to make entertainment and I am OK with his results so far.
Actually dude, the Hunger games was terribly rushed, and could’ve used AT LEAST another hour.
Lucas made 2 great Star Wars films, then made Jedi look like Disney with teddy bear warriors and bumbling storm troopers…the guys controlling the entire galaxy. Then he made three more movies in Disney-esq fashion. Are they enjoyable? Yes… Could they have been much more realistic and ultra-incredible? YES. Adding additional material, how Han shot Greedo, etc., was just stupid.
LOTR was different in that Jackson was making movies where legendary books and stories already existed. If he simply followed the books, albeit cutting them down a bit where necessary, the movies would have been ultra-incredible. Yes, they were still great movies but they also were Disney-esq.
Key subject matter cut, the score keeping of Legolas and Gimli in the middle of battle, Frodo getting his gut filled with so much poison it oozed from his mouth yet he recovers, the meeting with the Mouth of Sauron, Denethor running a quarter mile while on fire to fall off a cliff instead of just dying on the pyre like the book (was that not dramatic enough?). Just plain stupid stuff!
I hope Jackson doesn’t screw up the Hobbit all the same. However I think that two movies should have sufficed…especially when the LOTR books were crushed into one movie each. I guess we’ll see…but Jackson and Lucas definitely share a brain.