Its now set in stone everyone well from what I read it is, according to various sources including movieweb.com. Ian McKellen has made it official and signed on the dotted line. He will be returning as Gandalf in Peter Jackson's upcoming prequels The Hobbit and The Hobbit Sequel.
A lot of doubt arose over McKellen being unable to reprise the role he brought to life in the original The Lord of the Rings trilogy when the actor revealed on November 2nd that he had not yet signed a contract to return. He did not explain further, hoping too not complicate the matter any more than it already was.
On Wednesday, Ian McKellen broke the news that he is in fact returning to the world of The Hobbit by updating his own personal website. Here's what he said in his 2010 feature film section:
"The Hobbits, two films, start shooting in New Zealand in February 2011. Filming will take over a year. Casting in Los Angeles, New York City and London has started. The script too proceeds. The first draft is crammed with old and new friends, again on a quest in Middle Earth."
Now in regards to Hobbiton, here's your first look...
You guys can judge for yourselves
The Hobbit comes to theaters November 2012 and stars Martin Freeman, Cate Blanchett, Ron Perlman, Hugo Weaving, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Doug Jones, James Nesbitt.
The Hobbit Sequel comes to theaters November 2013 and stars Ron Perlman, Hugo Weaving, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Doug Jones, Kiran Shah.
Personally I cannot wait for this movie it will be amazing as well as groundbreaking as the first trilogy. So what do you guys think?