Filming on The Hobbit delayed

Probably Hollywood’s most-anticipated post-Avatar blockbuster, The Hobbit looks like it is going to be slow off the starting blocks.

According to Gandalf himself, Sir Ian McKellen, the shoot was originally expected to be underway in Spring 2010.

Now Peter Jackson has given a more conservative estimate of starting in the middle of the year, quashing any hopes of getting our hands on any casting notes or on-set pics for a few more months.

The writing dream team of PJ, Lord of the Rings cohorts Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, and new-boy Guillermo Del Toro are still working together on the script, and there is still no official studio greenlight.

A finished script is required before the budget can be accurately estimated, so hopefully they’ll be getting the cheques signed off soon.

Perhaps the buzz surrounding PJ’s latest directorial effort The Lovely Bones will help get the ball rolling. Fingers crossed, we’ll need a mega-blockbuster fix once the dust has settled on Avatar.

Source [ FirstShowing ]

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