Who Will Play Bilbo Baggins In The Hobbit?
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By Dave Gonzales on
July 17, 2009
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**UPDATE***
Peter Jackson has taken to Empire Mag to quell the rising rumors that a casting announcement will take place at San Diego Comic Con next week:
“No, we won’t be announcing Bilbo for a little while,” he said when we asked about a Comic-Con announcement. “We’re starting to think about casting, but we’re knee-deep in the script right now. And when we do go to actors, they’re probably going to ask to see a script, so we’re powering ahead with getting the first draft done.”
This seems contradictory to Del Toro's suggestion that they have narrowed it down and we'll know in a few weeks. But, it does seem clear that Jackson doesn't want us hounding him at the Con.
Original Story:
Peter Jackson and Guerillmo Del Toro have been working hard, getting the scripts for the two upcoming prequels to the Lord Of The Rings trilogy ready for a more vigorous pre-production. We suspect certain actors from the previous trilogy will join on for these two films, one based on The Hobbit and the other on additional material bridging The Hobbit and the War Of The Ring trilogy.
The question has always been hanging in the air since these projects were announced is who is going to inherit the role of Bilbo Baggins since Ian Holm (Bilbo in the previous films) is too old to return to a prequel part.
Now, rumors from Hero Complex suggest that Peter Jackson (attending Comic Con in support of District 9, which he produced) is going to drop the casting bomb on us next week. That means the short list is now important, so who's on it?
We've been hearing four names (although one is a stupid rumor-based long shot) and they are:
- David Tennant - That's right, the UK's Dr. Who might be playing Bilbo. He's kind of a new face for audiences outside England and genre-lovi' Who fans, so he might be the best choice if Del Toro and Jackson want to bring someone new into the epic fantasy fold.
- Daniel Radcliffe - Obviously not new to the epic fantasy fold as most of you saw him or plan on seeing him as Harry Potter this weekend/ It seems like an odd choice to go from one blockbuster, bar-setting fantasy to the next, but who turns down a Peter Jackson Tolkien movie? Really?
- James McAvoy - He played a pretty good bad-ass in Wanted, was saccharine sweet in Atonement and flexed his chops in The Last King Of Scotland. McAvoy has some range and he's also done fantasy epic in Narnia as Mr. Tumnus in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.
- Jack Black - Yeah, that's not going to happen. But someone put his name in there. Probably the British and their tabloid press.
The conspiracy theory de jour is that David Tennant is going to be the winner. Dr. Who is having it's first showing ever at the San Diego Con and Tennant will be in attendance.
I'm okay with every choice except - obviously - the fake one. I think McAvoy would be able to make the less-wise Bilbo believable, but also be able to transition the character closer to Holm's appearance in The Fellowship Of The Ring. Radcliffe is developing at a faster pace than I expected him to, building his chops from years and years as a wizard. It wouldn't be a bad choice, but I could see some folks getting incensed. Tennant has experience selling sci-fi/fantasy plots and with a built in audience for more Tolkien adaptations, casting a big name like McAvoy or Radcliffe might be an unnecessary move if Tennant can do the job and do it well.
My money is about evenly split between McAvoy and Tennant.
If Jack Black gets the part. Well, there might be riots. Geek riots.
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Tags: The Hobbit, News |
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