Ages ago, John Rhys-Davies spent a few days visiting the Hobbit set while he was in New Zealand. Unlike Elijah Wood or Orlando Bloom, for well-known reasons there was no announcement that he would reprise his role as Gimli son of Gloin.
At first [Rhys-Davies] denied it, but after a little pressing he smiled really big, laughed, winked, and said that maybe it was possible. His smile… his laugh… I’m taking this as a pretty big indicator that he will be involved in some small way.
Considering that in Lord of the Rings, Rhys-Davies also provided the voice of Treebeard, could it be possible that for The Hobbit he might cameo something like the voice of one of the trolls? (Highlight the sentence to see our hidden, possibly spoilerish speculation!)
Red Carpet Tours is making a final call for fans planning to make the pilgrimage to New Zealand for ‘The Hobbit’ Premiere. This is the deluxe 14-day tour covering both islands of New Zealand, with visits to all the major LOTR and Hobbit film locations as well as automatic inclusion at the Hobbit Premiere Party in Wellington on November 26th. If you are travelling half way round the world for the event, you need to ‘Make the most of the time given to you’. Red Carpet Tours has been running these tours now for 10 years, and this year was awarded a Certificate of Excellence from Trip Advisor, as well as stellar ratings from Rankers. There is only limited space available, so book soon!
Tourism New Zealand seems super-keen to maximise the tourism opportunities that The Hobbit is offering. Chief executive Kevin Bowler says that new 100% Pure commercials, designed to sell New Zealand to the world, will be “hugely influenced by The Hobbit”.
A theme of the new marketing strategy will be “New Zealand: where fantasy meets reality”.
New advertisements will feature people enjoying what the country had to offer. Bowler says that previous images of rolling hills, lush bush and green pastures had given the impression New Zealand was beautiful, yet deserted, and visitors would struggle to find activities to occupy themselves.
The biggest question received about the TORn Hobbit Premiere tour has been whether or not people living down in New Zealand, or already traveling through the region, can attend the Red Carpet/TORn premiere party. The answer is yes, but the tickets are not on sale just yet. Everyone thought it best to wait until after the madness and mayhem of comic con was over before returning our minds to Middle-earth er, New Zealand. Once Red Carpet Tours has their Party ticket registration form live and online, we will post that link. For everyone else who isn’t a local resident or already traveling through the region, feel free to conside Red Carpet Tour’s full tour, or our little Middle-earth week long getaway. Follow the link for Tour Details.
We are now finally able to take deposits and start booking excited fans to join TheOneRing.net in New Zealand for what promises to be a party to remember. You will find all the details and proposed schedule for the tour here TORn Hobbit premiere tour. Please do take the time to read the schedule and all the terms before committing to the Non-Refundable Deposit of$300 per person. Once you’ve read through everything, asked all the questions you need to ask, you may fill out the Registration Form Space is limited, so this will have to be on a First Come, First Served basis. And if we are unable to accommodate you on the trip, you will be contacted and offered the choice of a refund or being put on the waitlist. You may email me at Garfeimao@TheOneRing.net or Cathy.U@Travelstoreusa.com
It’s so easy to become swept up in the drama of Frodo and the One Ring that we forget there was another side to this story. Millions of ordinary, every-day citizens of Modor had to deal with the mounting pressure of war at their doorstep. Faced with the seemingly insurmountable task of filling their ranks, the Department of Defense (in the form of Zeke Mahogany Comedy) put together a slick recruitment video to stir the hearts and minds of the average Orc and inspire some good, old-fashioned heroism. Posted on I09 on June 9th and brought to our attention by Spy John G., the video is part of the Zeke Mahogany Comedy troupe’s ongoing online sketch series on YouTube.
