A Look at Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit

Squee! I’m sorry, I can’t help myself. Sherlock actor Martin Freeman is TOO CUTE as Bilbo Baggins, aka The Hobbit. Gosh, just look at him up there. He looks 15 years younger, yes? Thank you Entertainment Weekly, for not one, not two, but THREE first looks at the latest Peter Jackson production! Skip on over to the EW site to peruse the other images. They include a portrait of Gandolf the Gray (it is a prequel, remember), and The Hobbit star with his director. You will find the full Middle Earth article in the June 24 print issue of EW. Oh, wait, that’s today! Squee again!

Freeman’s Sherlock co-star will also appear in the two-part epic. Evangeline Lilly is in the cast and Legolas will return.

So, what are the director’s thoughts on his new star? ”He fits the ears, and he’s got some very nice feet,” Jackson says of his Bilbo. ”I think he’s got the biggest hobbit feet we’ve had so far. They’re a little bit hard to walk in, but he’s managed to figure out the perfect hobbit gait.”

Jackson also gave the good word on the shooting process. ”There’s no way you can pace yourself for shoots like these,” Jackson says. ”When we were going through the schedule for The Hobbit, I felt a terrible drop in my stomach when I saw that we’d be shooting for 254 days. We’re only 12 days short of The Lord of the Rings even though we’re only doing two movies. When I saw that, I had to sort of pick myself up off the floor and carry on.”

You do know the titles for the two films, right? Enjoy!