‘The Hobbit’ to Start Shooting in July

On his website, Ian McKellen has recently confirmed that filming for the long anticipated film of The Hobbit will begin in July in New Zealand.

McKellen will reprise his role as Gandalf, and casting is now taking place in New York, London, and Los Angeles for other roles. The story will be divided into two films, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The first will be a close adaptation of the original story while the second will focus on an original story of events happening in the years between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

Peter Jackson (director of the Oscar winning Lord of the Rings films) will produce the films with his wife, Fran Walsh. The script is now being worked on and is set to feature many returning characters from the other films. It will focus on adventures in Middle Earth, though they will be different from Frodo’s quest to destroy the ring.

Del Toro has previously directed the Oscar winning Spanish film, Pan’s Labyrinth.