For those that cherish Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, it is hoped beyond hope that he and his film company, Wingnut Films, would someday bring Tolkien’s “first” installment of Middle Earth to the big screen. After being completely immersed in the fantasy world Jackson created, to learn that he, in all likelihood, would not direct The Hobbit does not rest well in the hearts and minds of fans, myself included. Here is the problem in a nutshell. The Hobbit is an announced (read: that does not mean scheduled) film to be released sometime in 2009. New Line Cinema is set to produce it as it did the Lord of the Rings trilogy and MGM retains worldwide distribution rights. So far, nothing has changed. Producer Saul Zaentz bought the rights to Tolkien in 1976 and owns Tolkien Enterprises. He has publicly stated that Jackson would helm The Hobbit after he finishes King Kong, The Lovely Bones, and the stalled video game move adaptation of Halo. On Nov. 19, 2006, two days after Zaentz issued his support of Jackson, TheOneRing.net posted an e-mail received from Jackson that said New Line was going to shop around for a new director. Whaa? Apparently, New Line has dissolved its relationship with Peter Jackson. Someone else will be directing The Hobbit and another Lord of the Rings prequel. The dissolution is the result of Jackson’s ongoing legal battle with New Line Cinema regarding accounting principals that Jackson feels put too much money in New Line’s pocket. New Line claims that Jackson just wants too much money and that’s that. Time, not money, was the key factor in New Line’s decision to move on without Jackson or Wingnut Films. The option for New Line to make the film expires sometime near the end of this year when it reverts to intellectual property owner Saul Zaentz. Curiously, MGM is staunchly backing Jackson in the debate. In retaliation, New Line co-chair Robert Shaye said last month that Jackson will never work for the studio again. Where does Jackson stand on all this? He recently issued a statement that the lawsuit is due simply because of New Line’s failure to account for various financial anomalies that appeared in a partial audit of The Fellowship of the Ring and that he holds no personal malice toward Shaye or New Line Cinema. From Wingnut Films – “For over two years, New Line has denied us the ability to audit The Two Towers and The Return of the King, despite repeated requests. Film auditing is a common and straightforward practice within the industry and we don’t understand why New Line Cinema has taken this position.” Fans of the beloved franchise are not happy. One name that has surfaced to potentially direct The Hobbit is Sam Raimi. Raimi developed a cult following for his Evil Dead film series and shot to superstardom when he took the wheel for all three Spiderman movies. His bona fides aside, many worry that Raimi will not treat The Hobbit with the respect it is due. Anxious times for Tolkien fans but let’s hope it’s all for naught. After all, you can never say never in Hollywood.

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