Peter Jackson’s “Christmas Treat” For ‘Hobbit’ Fans: A Production Video From The New Zealand Set
J.R.R. Tolkienfans already got a nice holiday gift earlier this week whenthe gorgeous first trailerforThe Hobbitwas released on Tuesday, butPeter Jacksonwasn’t done playing Santa. The director took to his Facebook wall a couple of days ago to promise an additional “Christmas treat” to mark the ten-year anniversary ofThe Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ringas well as promote the twoHobbitfilms, and finally revealed his big surprise — the fifth production video from the set ofThe Hobbit— earlier today. (Which I think technically makes it a Festivus present rather than a Christmas one, but we’ll let that slide.) Watch the video after the jump.
However, one tiny detail of that gigantic set caught our attention: Does that hobbit at 10:30 bear a suspicious resemblance toEric Vespe(a.k.a. Quint fromAin’t It Cool News) or what?
The first of the two Hobbit films,The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, is slated for aDecember 14, 2012release, withThe Hobbit: There and Back Againfollowing onDecember 13, 2013. The sprawling cast includesMartin Freeman,Ian Holm,Ian McKellen,Richard Armitage,Graham McTavish,Ken Stott,Aidan Turner,Dean O’Gorman,Mark Hadlow,Jed Brophy,Adam Brown,John Callen,Peter Hambleton,William Kircher,James Nesbitt,Stephen Hunter,Christopher Lee,Elijah Wood,Orlando Bloom,Evangeline Lilly,Andy Serkis,Hugo Weaving,Benedict Cumberbatch,Mikael Persbrandt,Lee Pace,Stephen Fry,Cate Blanchett,Sylvester McCoy,Jeffrey Thomas,Mike Mizrahi,Bret McKenzie,Ryan Gage,Barry Humphries,Conan Stevens, andJohn Bell.
“The Hobbit” follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakensheild. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers.
Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever … Gollum.
Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.
