The Hobbit: "An Unexpected Journey" & "There and Back Again"

raisedbywolves was referring to McAvoy, not Freeman.

Although I think McAvoy is a much better actor, Freeman looks more hobbity. I'd be happy with either, though for now I'd say I'm rooting for McAvoy. I'm gutted the rumours that he would be playing Scotty in Star Trek turned out to be false.

 

I didn't know that he was rumored to be Scotty. Freeman would be an interesting choice to be Bilbo, but i'd rather see McAvoy in the role.

 

Whoever is cast should look at least a little bit like a young Ian Holm. McAvoy is a great actor, though, I think he'd do well in the role.

 

GDT said in the online Chat that since everybody loves him so avidly, they're going to use Ian Holm where possible. I think this means they're going to use prosthetics and even digital tweaking to bring the facial features of whomever they cast as Bilbo into line with Holm's. But that's just my fanboy speculation.

 

That's cool.

 

I'm glad to hear that. I enjoyed Holm's limited performance in the three original films and I'm glad to hear that he'll be returning in some capacity.

 

If that's the case, it would be easier just to use Ian Holm himself and make him look younger.

I mean in LOTR they just used that terrible wig, but it was enough...imagine the wrinkles they could wipe away with CG today.

 

Yeah, the de-aging they did on Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan for X3 was amazingly good. But could they sustain that for a whole film? Bilbo is in every scene!

 

Depends on how deep their pocketbook is and how much of their budget they are willing to spend on that.

 

I think they could. Jackson was able to sustain a relationship between Naomi Watts and a 50 foot CG gorilla in King Kong, and don't forget about Gollum in TTT and ROTK.

 

In which case it comes down to how much Ian Holm could "handle".

Even with a stunt double, a film like the hobbit is going to require him to do a little more then walk on stage, speak lines, and retreat to trailer.

climbing over rocks and in trees...swimming...battles...establishing shots of him in the moment will still be needed, which does take a lot for someone of advancing years.

Now granted, Bilbo isn't Indiana Jones...but that's kind of the situation here.

 

I agree, that's certainly a concern as well. In those cases they would probably need to utilize a stunt double which would make production more difficult.

 

I don't know, I think I'd rather see a new actor frankly.

They should save the CGI tricks for Smaug if you ask me

 

Even though I think that Holm is great, a younger actor(like McAvoy) would be better suited to play Bilbo, imo.

 

Same here. They'd be better off with a younger actor.

 

Except they may have to forget that line "You haven't aged a day" in Fellowship

 

Won't a lot of the walking shots be done in the same way that they were in LotR , where little were used in order to convey the smaller height of the hobbits compared to regular people?

 

^ ^ Probably. If they use the same techniques, some of it will be little people next to standard-sized people, some of it will be standard-sized people in forced perspective and/or next to people in "big" suits, and some of it will be digital.

As to the line in FOTR about Bilbo not having aged a day, Gandalf means since they last saw each other, not since the end of The Hobbit all those years ago. They've seen each other in the interim.

 

If they do recast Bilbo...who bets they re-edit the opening sequence of Fellowship to include the new bilbo finding the ring, rather then the red-wigged holm?

and the LOTR special editions are born!

 

Legolas shot first?

 

lol

 

And Aragorn meets with a CGI Sauron outside the Prancing Pony before taking the Hobbits with him on the journey.

 

Well it's nice of Del Toro to say something like that.

I don't buy it for a second...

but it's nice to know he's "savvy" enough to attempt to diffuse the issue.

Though really, if he thinks the speculation on "style" hasn't already led to ulcers, he's deluded.

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I'm still praying they dump this "sequel"...but if they don't...that's where Lee goes...if he lives that long.

seriously, with this tentative schedule...he may not make it to shooting dates.

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I really truly hope that he named those "names" for Bilbo as a way to dismiss them...the name should be Martin Freeman...McAvoy is WELL on his way to being a huge hollywood star...doing Hobbit would probably be a hinderance to him, and his celebrity would overshadow the role.

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So in essence, we'll get the same treatment that PJ gave us of LOTR...plenty of "updates" from the set...a well coordinated trickle of information.

 

What don't you "buy", exactly?