Bruce Hopkins writes: Here is a link to an interview with Sylvester McCoy from the Armageddon convention in Melbourne in Oct. I was a guest with Sylvester McCoy and sat in on an interview he did with a Dr Who fansite. I was able to record the interview. Sylvester and I caught up during the event as we had spent some time together with Ian McKellen and Jonathon Hyde when they were out in NZ with the Royal Shakespeare Company a couple of years ago. The Hobbit was still being talked about as possibly being shot away from NZ when the interview happened. More..
Category: Sylvester McCoy
PETER JACKSON ANNOUNCES LATEST ADDITION TO THE HOBBIT CAST James Nesbitt Confirmed to Play Major Role in The Hobbit. (LOS ANGELES November 1, 2010) –One of Britain’s most beloved actors, James Nesbitt (Millions and TV’s Cold Feet), is the latest actor to join the ensemble cast of The Hobbit, it was jointly announced today by Toby Emmerich, President and Chief Operating Officer, New Line Cinema; Alan Horn, President and Chief Operating Officer, Warner Bros.; and Steve Cooper, co-Chief Executive Officer of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.
Nesbitt will play Bofur, a disarmingly forthright, funny and occasionally brave Dwarf. “James’s charm, warmth and wit are legendary as is his range as an actor in both comedic and dramatic roles. We feel very lucky to be able to welcome him as one of our cast.” said director Peter Jackson.
Newcomer, Adam Brown will play Ori, another of the Dwarf Company which sets out to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the infamous dragon, Smaug. Jackson comments, “Adam is a wonderfully expressive actor and has a unique screen presence. I look forward to seeing him bring Ori to life”.
Nesbitt and Brown will join the cast announced on October 21, which includes Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage (soon to appear in Captain America: The First Avenger), Aidan Turner (TV’s Being Human), Rob Kazinsky (TVs EastEnders), Graham McTavish (Secretariat), John Callen (TV’s Power Rangers Jungle Fury), Stephen Hunter (TV’s All Saints), Mark Hadlow (King Kong) and Peter Hambleton (TV’s The Strip).
Since The Hobbit films received a green light on October 15, pre-production has been in full swing with release dates set for December, 2012 and December, 2013. The two The Hobbit films are being co-produced by New Line Cinema and MGM, with New Line managing production, Warner Bros Pictures handling domestic distribution and MGM distributing internationally.
Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Carolynne Cunningham are producing the films, with co-writer Philippa Boyens serving as co-producer and Ken Kamins as executive producer. The Oscar-winning, critically acclaimed LOTR trilogy, also from the production team of Jackson, Walsh and Cunningham, grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide at the box office. In 2003, “Return of the King” swept the Academy Awards, winning all of the 11 categories in which it was nominated, including Best Picture – the first ever Best Picture win for a fantasy film. The trilogy’s production was also unprecedented at the time. Continue reading “BREAKING NEWS: James Nesbitt is Bofur & Adam Brown is Ori!”
Trade union council president Helen Kelly has apologised for calling Peter Jackson a “spoiled brat” but is not sorry for backing industrial action that may see filming of The Hobbit moved overseas. Her apology comes as one of the newly cast stars in the Lord Of The Rings prequel speaks out about the dispute. Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy, famous for his role as sci-fi’s Dr Who in the 1980s, was this weekend cast as wizard Radagast the Brown in the film. Speaking at the Armageddon Expo in Auckland yesterday, McCoy said he – like all of New Zealand – was still waiting to hear where and when filming would go ahead. More..
Attendees of the Dr. Who Panel at the Armageddon Expo in Auckland yesterday are saying that Sylvester McCoy has confirmed that he has been cast in the role of Radagast the wizard in “The Hobbit.” Rumors have been flying about McCoy having auditioned, some thinking he might have even been cast as Bilbo. As early as August, McCoy started hinting that he had been been cast in a role that was not Bilbo. However earlier this week it started leaking in earnest (from McCoy himself), that he had been cast as Radagast. Confirming the news yesterday at Armageddon adds one more piece to the casting puzzle and confirms that Radagast the Brown, contemporary of Gandalf and Saruman and lover of nature and animals, will indeed be part of “The Hobbit” movies. Thanks to message board member, Earl, for the great tip!
UPDATE: Sylvester McCoy Cast But Not Signed Yet
Here’s more confirmation lending veracity to the above story.
The New Zealand Herald is reporting that Sylvester McCoy flew out to Wellington last Thursday to meet with PJ and Philippa about The Hobbit, and he confirms that he has been cast as Radagast the Brown, but he hasn’t signed any contracts yet.
His journey into Middle-earth began back in 2007 when he met Peter Jackson during the New Zealand tour of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of King Lear.
About the turmoil surrounding the location shooting for The Hobbit, Sylvester McCoy says, “Everybody wants to make it here [i.e., New Zealand]. It would be horrible if it was made anywhere else.”
Up to date casting new is available at our Hobbit Cast Page.
The announcement of the cast for The Hobbit took place on October 21st, 2010, additional announcements were made on November 1st, 2010.
CAST LIST SO FAR (As of November 1st, 2010)
MARTIN FREEMAN – BILBO BAGGINS CONFIRMED
RICHARD ARMITAGE – THORIN OAKENSHIELD CONFIRMED
AIDAN TURNER – KILI CONFIRMED
ROB KAZINSKY – FILI CONFIRMED
GRAHAM MCTAVISH – DWALIN CONFIRMED
JOHN CALLEN – OIN CONFIRMED
STEPHEN HUNTER – BOMBUR CONFIRMED
MARK HADLOW – DORI CONFIRMED
PETER HAMBLETON – GLOIN CONFIRMED
JAMES NESBITT – BOFUR CONFIRMED
ADAM BROWN – ORI CONFIRMED
Rumored and Speculative
SYLVESTER MCCOY – RADAGAST THE BROWN UNCONFIRMED
BRIAN BLESSED – unknown RUMORED
BILL NIGHY – THE VOICE OF SMAUG RUMORED
VIGGO MORTENSEN – ARAGORN RUMORED
IAN MCKELLEN – GANDALF RUMORED
HUGO WEAVING – ELROND RUMORED
CATE BLANCHETT – GALADRIEL RUMORED
ANDY SERKIS – GOLLUM RUMORED
Unknown Casting or Voice Talent
Balin
Bifur
Nori
Bert
Tom
William
Beorn
Elvenking
Master of Lake-town
Bard
Dain
Eagles
Spiders Etc..
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MARTIN FREEMAN – BILBO BAGGINS
Martin John C. Freeman (born 8 September 1971) is an English actor. He is known for his roles as Tim Canterbury in the BBC’s Golden Globe-winning comedy The Office, Arthur Dent in the film adaptation of Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, and Dr. John Watson in Sherlock.
Freeman has appeared in at least 18 TV shows, 14 theatre productions, and several radio productions. His most famous role remains that of Tim Canterbury in The Office. He also appeared in the sitcom Hardware. Additionally Freeman has appeared in several films, including Sacha Baron Cohen’s Ali G Indahouse (2002) and Richard Curtis’ Love Actually (2003). As well as his various comic roles, Freeman has also appeared in serious dramatic parts. His most prominent dramatic role to date has been as Lord Shaftesbury in the 2003 BBC historical drama Charles II: The Power and The Passion. He can also be seen making a brief appearance in the first episode of the second series of This Life, helping himself to £30 from Milly and Egg’s bedside table before unknowingly swigging a mouthful of Egg’s urine from a lager can. Freeman also starred in the BBC’s television series The Robinsons. Freeman also had a cameo performance in episode 1 of Black Books.
He had a cameo in Hot Fuzz (2007), a film written by Shaun of the Dead writers Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, and had a brief non-speaking role in Shaun of the Dead as Yvonne’s boyfriend, Declan. He is in the 2007 film The All Together written & directed by Gavin Claxton. He also appeared along side Roger Lloyd Pack, Jamie Hogarth and Christopher Mellows in the 2007 Bill Kenwright theatre production of The Last Laugh. Continue reading “Meet Your Hobbit Cast”
By Mike Fleming at Deadline.com: BREAKING: While Peter Jackson and Warner Bros are figuring out where they’ll shoot back-to-back installments of The Hobbit, Jackson has begun to set his cast for the ambitious projects that will begin shooting in February for release in December 2012, and 2013. As Deadline told you last week, Martin Freeman is set to play Bilbo Baggins, the adventurous Hobbit whose adventures and discovery of the One Ring leads the story up to The Lord of the Rings. Freeman has appeared in films ranging from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Hot Fuzz to Love Actually.
Jackson has cast several other significant Dwarf characters.
Richard Armitage (MI-5 and Captain America: The First Avenger) will play Thorin Oakenshield, leader of the Company of Dwarves which sets off to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from a thieving dragon. Aidan Turner (Being Human) and Rob Kazinsky (EastEnders) will play Kili and Fili, members of the Company of Dwarves. Graham McTavish (Secretariat) will play Dwalin, John Callen (Power Rangers Jungle Fury) will play Oin; Stephen Hunter (All Saints) will play Bombur, and Mark Hadlow (King Kong) plays Dori, while Peter Hambleton (The Strip) will play Gloin. Continue reading “Deadline: Peter Jackson Sets First Names For ‘The Hobbit’”