Wow, one of the most bitter feuds in recent Hollywood history has apparently ended and ended abruptly. Peter Jackson is going to executive produce “The Hobbit” according to the Associated Press.
However, he won’t be directing which is sure to disappoint many loyal and devout “Lord Of The Rings” fans.
Any Jackson involvement at all however, is nothing short of a miracle. You’ll recall that a nasty feud between Jackson and New Line (the studio behind the ‘LOTR’ films) began last year when the formerly portly and disheveled director sued the company to open its accounting books over the billions of dollars they made from the films.
Tons of nastiness were spilled in the imbroglio and a lot of it was personal. At one point New Line head Bob Shaye even vowed the Jackson would never work on LOTR prequel, “under his watch,” at the studio.
“I don’t want to work with [Jackson] anymore. Why would I? So the answer is, he will never make any movie with New Line Cinema again while I’m still working at the company,” he once said.
Well, apparently the two sides have buried the Orc-like hatchet and Shaye is singing a totally different tune (apparently all litigation has been settled).
“I’m very pleased that we’ve been able to put our differences behind us,” Jackson said in a press release. “So that we may begin a new chapter with our old friends at New Line. ‘The Lord of the Rings’ is a legacy we proudly share with Bob and Michael, and together, we share that legacy with millions of loyal fans all over the world. We are delighted to continue our journey through Middle Earth. I also want to thank Harry Sloan and our new friends at MGM for helping us find the common ground necessary to continue that journey.”
According to MTV, the two “Hobbit” films – “The Hobbit” and its sequel – are scheduled to be shot simultaneously, with pre-production beginning asap and principal photography tentatively set for a 2009 start. The intention is to release “The Hobbit” in 2010 and its sequel the following year.
Good and bad news. Nerdlingers will be happy that Jackson is involved, many will be disappointed that he’s not actually directing himself. We admit we rather liked these films and would have liked to have seen him behind the camera. Oh well…
No director is attached yet, but Sam Raimi’s name was tossed around as far back as a year ago and he was up for it, should it land in his lap. We hope not, the “Spiderman” series isn’t anything special and the third one positively sucked. PJ we hope you’re listening.
