The following is a snap of a statue that was spotted in the foyer of a cinema in New Zealand. Apparently this space is usually reserved for characters from Peter Jackson's other films -- including of course the Lord Of The Rings trilogy -- so this being a dragon (and oddly bearing a slight resemblance to Benedict Cumberbatch!) it's a good assumption that this is our first full look at Smaug from The Hobbit: The Desolation Of...Smaug!
"So, we went to the new Star Trek movie last night at Roxy Cinema here in Miramar, Wellington and when we came out a statue was sitting in the middle of the foyer which either we missed or was put there during the movie. Not saying it’s Smaug or anything, but I took a picture for you to make your own mind up about it! The statue placement is usually reserved for statues of characters from PJ films. THey’ve had TinTin, Gandalf, Gollum etc"
I think it could be Smaug, although I find it a bit unlikely that this would be on full public display considering the character's likeness has thus far been kept under wraps. Thoughts?
UPDATE: Apparently teh cinema were contacted and although this is a WETA design, it's for some earlier tv show that was never picked up. I dunno..that damn Dragon looks like Cumberbatch!
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Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.