Argyris writes: Next Saturday Elijah Wood will chat with Edith Bowman on BBC Radio 1. If you want to ask him anything about LOTR trilogy…or even better about the upcoming Hobbit movie, you can ask him on BBCradio1 facebook page or send your e-mail to lovely Edith Bowman! The show will be next Saturday morning at 7 o’clock (UK time). More..
Category: Hobbit Cast News
Sir Ian McKellen has updated his blog with a new entry titled “Soldiering On” and, among other things, talks about his role as Gandalf the Grey in The Hobbit.
The relevant excerpt follows:
In The Hobbit, Gandalf is part old duffer but more he’s a soldier. Peter Jackson, who likes to see the old guys fighting it out, reminded me the other day that Gandalf is a commander, a general.
Having slain the Great Goblin I was being a bit too indulgent with the dwarves who meanwhile had mislaid Bilbo in the goblin tunnels. I’ve played enough soldiers to see that PJ was right and in the next take I was very stern.
The image on the right comes courtesy of McKellen’s blog post.
On this weeks episode of Hobbit in 5 we take a look at some new amazing set pics of Hobbiton. We also have the mysterious set in Wakatipu nearing completion. We continue to track the Hobbit cast and crew, LOTR collectable items and MGM and Netflix partner up to distribute The Hobbit.
Sir Christopher Lee today received possibly the most befitting award which could be bestowed on an actor who has played Count Dracula seven times when he accepted the Bram Stoker Gold Medal in Dublin. The veteran actor, who played Dracula and other ‘Hammer Horror’ roles between the 1950s and 1970s, received the honour from the Trinity College Philosophical Society, which counts Bram Stoker amongst its past presidents.
He also played such roles as Count Dooku in three of the Star Wars films, Sarumen in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Francisco Scaramanga in the Bond classic The Man with the Golden Gun. Lee previously held the Guinness world record for the most screen credits of any living actor with 244 acknowledged film and TV movie roles, until the record was broken by Indian actor, Brahmanandam Kanneganti. More..
Sir Ian McKellen initially said no to Gandalf and only scored the pivotal Lord of the Rings role thanks to a chance meeting in a restaurant. While it’s almost inconceivable to imagine wizened wizard Gandalf being played by anyone else, McKellen says shooting for The Fellowship of the Ring – the first film in Peter Jackson’s blockbuster trilogy – clashed with another role he’d signed up for in 2000.
The frank admission comes in a new Lord of the Rings 10-year anniversary special in the December edition of Empire magazine, in which McKellen admits Gandalf was “the role of a lifetime” – but he initially turned down Jackson’s offer. More..
On this weeks episode we take a look a fabulous set report from embedded reporter. War in the North is out! Plus a new vignette starring LOTR vets. Hobbit set shifts to Piopio, pictures of a mysterious new set structure. Benedict Cumberbatch and Luke Evans details.