Many Ringers have wondered how much of Guillermo Del Toro’s conceptual work and vision we’ll end up seeing in The Hobbit. In a video interview with io9‘s Annalee Newitz, Peter Jackson provides the answer: not much. Del Toro had already invested 18 months in concept designs for the creatures and the world of The Hobbit waiting for movie to be greenlit. But in 2010 he left the project because of the delays, and Jackson eventually took over.

Jackson says: “I looked at his designs and I said: ‘The only person who can make a Guillermo Del Toro movie is Guillermo. It shouldn’t be me. I can’t put my head into somebody else’s idea — I have to generate it from the beginning.’ So really I redesigned the film pretty much. Some of Guillermo’s DNA is in there…”

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