Artist extraordinaire and our pal Colleen Doran writes: A little known 9 episode television version of The Hobbit made in Finland, circa 1993. Dug up by the folks at i09. More videos here. Someone will either deliver a takedown notice, or they won’t. You have got to see Boromir. He’s some samurai dude with a topknot of many braids. I must run and hug my Sideshow Weta Boromir sculpture, because it’s all about the Sean Bean, baby! think they edited out Legolas, which means someone in Finland doesn’t get his value as a love object. What fools these mortals be. It’s titled Hobitit. Heh. Heheh. More..
Year: 2010
Nancy Martsch writes: I wanted to let everyone know that the JRR Tolkien newsletter “Beyond Bree” will be producing a Calendar for 2011! Advance orders are being taken for the “Beyond Bree” 2011 Calendar. We accept PayPal, too. Please spread the word. If you would like to know more about the Calendar or “Beyond Bree”, contact Nancy Martsch at beyondbree@yahoo.com Continue reading “Beyond Bree 30th Anniversary Calendar”
Once again, reported by multiple sources, MGM’s due date for debt has been extended. Today’s September 15 has turned into tomorrow’s October 29, but that date will likely not matter either. The Hollywood reporter says:
As expected, more than 100 holders of almost $4 billion in MGM have agreed to a seventh debt forbearance agreement with the Century City-based studio. The Lion now has until Oct. 29 to pay lenders $250 million in principal and more than $450 million in owed interest.
But it’s likely the payments never will be made, as the struggling Lion is expected to creep into bankruptcy court before that with a plan for turning debt into lender equity.
This may not mean more delays for ‘The Hobbit’ as there seems to be a plan and leadership at work. As reported last week and updated in the L.A. Times blog:
MGM signed a nonbinding letter of intent with Spyglass founders Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum to take over management of the Century City-based studio. That deal must be ratified by MGM’s board of directors and more than 100 creditors, who are expected to swap their debt for equity as part of a prepackaged bankruptcy proceeding.
Stay tuned!
While we await further news of what today, 15th September 2010, has in store for MGM, it being the deadline for the studio’s sixth debt extension, there’s behind-the-scenes rumblings that seem to indicate good tidings might be on the way.
In an exclusive over at Deadline regarding a film titled “The Hunger Games” slated to go into production next year, Mike Fleming reports that director Sam Mendes (who had been tapped to direct the next film in the James Bond franchise) was one of the candidates met by studio chiefs over at Lionsgate, the producing studio for the film “The Hunger Games”. However, the report goes on to say that Sam Mendes,
“bowed out of contention last Friday… because the MGM picture is clearing up and it looks like production on 007 could begin by late summer or early fall, 2011 with Mendes at the helm and Daniel Craig back in the Aston Martin.”
It might be recalled that a couple of months ago development of the new James Bond film had been suspended indefinitely due to the uncertainty surrounding the future of MGM. The turnaround of the Bond situation probably means good news for the Hobbit movies too.
Sean Bean is set to star in a big-budget HBO adaptation of a series of fantasy novels by George R.R. Martin. Bean, familiar to TORn readers as Boromir in the LOTR movie trilogy, will play the role of Ned Stark, one of the leads and one of characters playing the titular “Game of Thrones.” The series is currently in production and premiers in 2011 with the newest teaser which includes footage of Bean below. For a little further information, you can also click here to see a behind-the-scenes segment featuring Bean.
Virgin Media writes: Who’s playing Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit? Good question. We haven’t a clue, although that’s not to say there haven’t been a few actors rumoured for the part. Ian Holm, who played Bilbo in the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, won’t reprise his role, meaning James McAvoy, Daniel Radcliffe, Tobey Maguire, David Tennant or Martin Freeman could play the hairy-footed hobbit. As long as it’s not Shia LaBeouf, we’re happy. More..