Martin Freeman reprises Bilbo in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Like all Hobbits, Bilbo Baggins is fond of his comfortable existence; all he needs to be happy is a full pantry and a good book. When the Wizard Gandalf and 13 Dwarves unexpectedly appear on Bilbo’s doorstep and invite him to join them on a dangerous adventure, Bilbo’s life changes forever. Initially skeptical of the invitation, Bilbo’s spirit of adventure leads him to join the Company of Thorin Oakenshield and become the “burglar” required to complete their quest to outwit a ferocious dragon and reclaim the Dwarves’ stolen treasure. To everyone’s surprise, including his own, Bilbo’s wit and courage prove that there is indeed more to this Hobbit than meets the eye.

 

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

British actor Martin Freeman returns as Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson's “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” the second in a trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.

As the second film begins, Gandalf (Ian McKellen), Bilbo, Thorin (Richard Armitage) and the Company are shaken and exhausted ... but not broken. 

Perhaps most changed of all is Bilbo Baggins himself. “I think, as the journey continues, Bilbo is able to look at the world a bit more square on,” says Freeman of the Hobbit at the center of the tale. “He is still the person he was; he is still frightened. He’s not a fighter or adventurer by nature, but to be among different species that want to kill him or eat him ... it doesn’t need to be said how huge a change that is. And Bilbo finds a bravery that he didn’t know he had, and, more importantly, that none of the others knew he had.” 

From his encounter beneath the Goblin Tunnels in the cave of the emaciated and conniving creature known as Gollum, Bilbo has emerged with something more than his courage. He has managed to steal Gollum’s “precious” ring with the power to make its wearer invisible. 

“Bilbo is beginning to have a strange relationship with this gold ring,” say screenwriter and producer Philippa Boyens. “He’s beginning to have a sense that there’s something off about it. It’s a tough choice for him to put it on and disappear, and he takes it off as soon as he can. Having such a great actor as Martin Freeman helps you find your way through this idea that this is not just a magic trinket that turns you invisible. Not every choice he had to make was a good choice down in those holes beneath the mountain.” 

Bilbo chooses to conceal this new information from Gandalf, and, for McKellen, Freeman’s portrayal of Bilbo in this moment illustrates the art the actor brings to his performance. “Martin has a palette of subtlety, and it’s often unpredictable,” McKellen observes. “He doesn’t like to do the same thing twice in front of the camera, so with a multitude of takes, in every one of those takes, Martin will give you a different nuance, a different color, a different aspect of the character he’s playing. You don’t know quite what’s going to happen next, which makes your reaction all the more real. With each take, I discovered something new about Bilbo.”

A production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” is released in 3D, 2D and IMAX theaters in the Philippines by Warner Bros. Pictures.

MARTIN FREEMAN IS BILBO BAGGINS

             Sixty years before his nephew Frodo would take his own great and terrible journey in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Bilbo Baggins is living a contented, peaceful existence in his cozy home of Bag End in the market town of Hobbiton. Like all of his kind, he loves his home and knows little of the world beyond the Shire, except what he gleans from his precious books and maps. 

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

             To play the Hobbit at the center of the adventure in Peter Jackson's highly awaited epic “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the filmmakers had only one actor in mind: Martin Freeman, who has been praised for the effortless humor and humanity he brings to comedic and dramatic roles alike. 

 

             “Martin has this amazing gift to be vulnerable at the same time as being staunch and strong,” screenwriter Philippa Boyens describes. “He can be funny at the same time as having pathos. All those qualities told us that he was Bilbo Baggins. We knew that Martin could take you along with him on this extraordinary journey.” 

             Out of the film’s colorful group of Dwarves and Wizards, Elves and Trolls, Bilbo is possibly the most relatable to audiences. Jackson confirms, “Bilbo is like a regular person, and reacts the way any one of us likely would if we were in his situation. When Bilbo is faced with a Troll, he doesn’t necessarily grab his sword and start fighting—he panics. And that’s what’s so incredible about Martin. He doesn’t want to pretend any of it; he’s always real and authentic. I’ve always thought of Hobbits as being very English, with their little cups of tea and their feet up by the fire. Martin is probably one of the nearest people to a Hobbit that I’ve ever met,” the director adds with a smile.

             Determined that Freeman was Bilbo, Jackson rearranged the shooting schedule to build in a hiatus for the actor to leave New Zealand and travel to the UK to perform his role as Watson on the television series “Sherlock.” “I was truly shocked and pleased because I really wanted to play Bilbo, and that’s not the kind of offer that comes back,” Freeman recalls. “It showed that they had such faith in me as Bilbo. They must have seen something in me that could play worry, but with humor.” 

             Freeman describes Bilbo as “quite self-sufficient. He is also quite self-satisfied, I think, a learned man without having traveled the world. The things that struck me about him suggested a certain timidity in many situations, a certain hesitancy in life, because his world is his home and Hobbiton, and beyond that is a bit scary.”

             In the film, Bilbo Baggins is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome Dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the Wizard Gandalf the Grey (Sir Ian McKellen), Bilbo finds himself joining a company of 13 Dwarves led by the legendary warrior Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage). Their journey will take them into the Wild, through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins, Orcs and deadly Wargs.

             A production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” will be released in the Philippines by Warner Bros. Pictures on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012.

The second film, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” will be released on Dec. 13, 2013, to be followed by “The Hobbit: There and Back Again” on July 18, 2014.

ADVENTURE BECKONS IN “THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY”

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

Embark on an epic adventure as Peter Jackson, Academy Award®-winning director of The Lord of the Rings trilogy unveils The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first of a series of three films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. 

Set 60 years before The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey follows the titular Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), as he is recruited by the Wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen) and thirteen Dwarves, led by the legendary Dwarf warrior Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage). With little more than a map they can’t completely read and Thorin’s consuming drive to reclaim his homeland and legacy, Bilbo is swept up in an epic journey through the treacherous and wondrous Wild on a quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf city of Erebor, which was long ago raided and conquered by the dragon Smaug. 

             Since setting off on his odyssey to make The Lord of the Rings films, The Hobbit has never been far from Jackson’s mind. When the skies cleared for Jackson and his collaborators to begin the adaptation process, they initially decided to divide the story up into two films. Only in the thick of production, when an early cut of the first film had been assembled, did the true scope of the project reveal itself, and “two became three.” 

             Jackson says he drew on both Tolkien’s intricate and layered 1937 novel and an additional treasure trove of material the revered English writer, professor and philologist developed in the decades after The Hobbit was first published. “At the end of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien included 125 pages of appendices which provide more backstory to the history of Middle-earth. This included describing some of the politics and events that occur during the years pertaining to The Hobbit,” he explains. “This new material was more serious, darker in tone, and more in line with The Lord of the Rings.”

             So, Jackson and his collaborators on the screenplay—Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, his fellow Oscar-winning co-writers on The Lord of the Rings films, along with Guillermo del Toro—set about piecing the material together. “With these films, we wanted to take the charm and humor of The Hobbit and blend it with some of the back story and tone of the appendices,” Jackson notes. “I didn’t want these to feel like children’s films any more than The Lord of the Rings. We wanted to make the very best films we could, films we’d like to see.”

             Working alongside Jackson throughout production were Boyens and Walsh, who adds that they found touchstones to Tolkien’s later imaginings within The Hobbit itself. “The Hobbit is much more playful than The Lord of the Rings,” Walsh notes. “We always saw it as a slightly more golden-lighted fairy tale, and it was written as that. But, by the time we get to the end, I think Tolkien pulls himself into the place where he would begin that epic journey of writing The Lord of the Rings. The nature of honor and leadership and power—those big themes that are quite prevalent in The Lord of the Rings—were sleeping and being awakened towards the end of The Hobbit.”

             And then the long and ever-evolving journey to adapt the piece began. “It was quite easy, surprisingly easy, to fall back into this world,” comments Boyens, whom Jackson describes as “the world’s biggest Tolkien geek.” “It felt right, because we do dearly love these characters. I think it was fate that we made The Lord of the Rings first. I think The Hobbit films are better for it. This would be a different type of film without having gone through the experiences we did with the incredible cast we had on The Lord of the Rings.”

             For Jackson, the process of dreaming and doing never ends. Once he and his team have wrapped this film, they will begin on the central film in the trilogy, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and then on to the finale, The Hobbit: There and Back Again. But, the filmmaker says, even then, it’s never over, “because the day that we finish the movie, usually within a day or two of it premiering, suddenly the movie exists in a whole different form. People still write us who have seen The Lord of the Rings, kids who have just seen it for the first time. And that’s part of the joy of making films. You’re realizing that you’ve created something that is entertaining people and will hopefully entertain people for years to come after we’re all gone. It doesn’t end with the completion of the film, not really. The real satisfaction comes when the movie begins screening in cinemas - it leaves your hands and passes into the hands of those it was made for – the audience.”

             A production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” will be released in the Philippines by Warner Bros. Pictures on December 13, 2012.

The second film, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” will be released on December 13, 2013, to be followed by “The Hobbit: There and Back Again” on July 18, 2014.

WARNER DEBUTS “THE HOBBIT,” “PACIFIC RIM” POSTERS

              Warner Bros. has unveiled the teaser posters of two of its eagerly anticipated potential blockbusters: “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” and “Pacific Rim.” Check out the one-sheet artworks below!

             From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of two films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. 

             Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey and Martin Freeman stars in the central role of Bilbo Baggins. The ensemble cast also includes Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ian Holm, Evangeline Lilly, Christopher Lee, Lee Pace, Andy Serkis, Hugo Weaving and Elijah Wood.

             Meanwhile, Oscar® nominee Guillermo del Toro (“Pan’s Labyrinth”) is directing “Pacific Rim” from a script by Travis Beacham (“Clash of the Titans”). 

             In the film, when legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)—who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse. 

             The film stars Charlie Hunnam (TV’s “Sons of Anarchy”), Idris Elba (“Thor”), Rinko Kikuchi (“The Brothers Bloom”), Charlie Day (“Horrible Bosses”), and Ron Perlman (the “Hellboy” films). 

             “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” opens in the Philippines on December 2012, to be followed by “Pacific Rim” on July 2013.

WARNER UNVEILS FOOTAGE OF “THE HOBBIT” SHOT WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY

BURBANK, CA, April 24, 2012 — Warner Bros. Pictures screened approximately 10 minutes of never-before-seen footage from New Line Cinema and MGM’s upcoming epic “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” which showcased the filmmaking innovation of 48 frames-per-second (fps), doubling the typical frame rate of 24 fps. The footage was part of the studio’s presentation at CinemaCon, the official convention of the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO).

The film, slated for worldwide release beginning December 14, 2012, is the first major motion picture to be made using this state-of-the art high-frame-rate technology. 

The footage was introduced via a taped greeting from director Peter Jackson, who gave a bit of history as to how 24 fps became the industry standard and why today’s technology allows for higher frame rates. He also explained that 48 fps is actually closer to the way the human eye views the world. Jackson offered, “As a filmmaker, I always want to create a strong sense of reality, to allow the audience to lose themselves in whatever the cinematic story is that I’m presenting. Shooting and projecting at 48 fps gives you the illusion that a hole has been cut in the wall of the cinema, and you’re watching the story unfold with a heightened sense of reality. It’s terrific for 3D; I’ve looked at the 48 fps dailies for ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ in 3D for over a year now, and with the reduction in strobing and flicker, it is a much more gentle experience on your eyes. 48 fps is not just limited to 3D. A film shot in 48 fps looks fantastic when projected in 2D, and converts well to 24 fps as well.”

Dan Fellman, Warner Bros. Pictures President, Domestic Distribution, stated, “24 fps has been the standard in our industry for the last 80 years, so this is an exciting breakthrough. It’s no surprise that Peter Jackson, with his commitment to innovation, is the first director to utilize 48 fps on a grand scale. It’s equally gratifying to me to see the exhibition community embrace this advancement.”

Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, Warner Bros. Pictures President, International Distribution, added, “We’re thrilled to be arm-in-arm with Peter Jackson and the exhibition community in exploring the possibilities of high-frame-rate filmmaking. The powerful combination of enduring storytelling and spectacular visuals will offer an exciting new movie-going experience to audiences around the world.”

From Academy Award^®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of two films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield.

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey and Martin Freeman stars in the central role of Bilbo Baggins. The ensemble cast also includes (in alphabetical order) Richard Armitage, John Bell, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Ian Holm, Peter Hambleton, Barry Humphries, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Evangeline Lilly, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, Mike Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Christopher Lee, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Andy Serkis, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott, Jeffrey Thomas, Aidan Turner, Hugo Weaving and Elijah Wood. 

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is directed by Peter Jackson from a screenplay by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro and Jackson. Jackson is also producing the film, together with Fran Walsh and Carolynne Cunningham. The executive producers are Alan Horn, Ken Kamins, Toby Emmerich and Zane Weiner, with Boyens serving as co-producer.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is a production of New Line Cinema and MGM, with New Line managing production. Warner Bros Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories, as well as all international television licensing being handled by MGM. “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” will be released beginning December 14, 2012, and the second film, “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” beginning December 13, 2013. Both films will be released in 3D and 2D in select theatres and IMAX.

PETER JACKSON STARTS FILMING “THE HOBBIT,” TWO-FILM EPIC ADAPTATION OF J.R.R. TOLKIEN’S TIMELESS CLASSIC

"In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit…"

Freeman(L) and Jackson(R)

            Wellington, NZ, March 21, 2011—Production has commenced in Wellington, New Zealand, on “The Hobbit,” filmmaker Peter Jackson’s two film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s widely read masterpiece. 

“The Hobbit” is set in Middle-earth 60 years before Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings,” which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar-winning “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”

The two films, with screenplays by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson, will be shot consecutively in digital 3D using the latest camera and stereo technology.  Filming will take place at Stone Street Studios, Wellington, and on location around New Zealand. 

“The Hobbit” follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug.  Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakensheild.  Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers.   

            Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever … Gollum.  

            

 Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know. 

Martin Freeman takes the title role as Bilbo Baggins and Ian McKellen returns in the role of Gandalf the Grey.   The Dwarves are played by Richard Armitage (Thorin Oakenshield), Ken Stott (Balin), Graham McTavish (Dwalin), William Kircher (Bifur) James Nesbitt (Bofur), Stephen Hunter (Bombur), Rob Kazinsky (Fili), Aidan Turner (Kili), Peter Hambleton (Gloin), John Callen (Oin), Jed Brophy (Nori), Mark Hadlow (Dori) and Adam Brown (Ori).  Reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy are Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, Andy Serkis as Gollum and Elijah Wood as Frodo.  Jeffrey Thomas and Mike Mizrahi also join the cast as Dwarf Kings Thror and Thrain, respectively.  Further casting announcements are expected.

“The Hobbit” is produced by Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, alongside Carolynne Cunningham.  Executive producers are Ken Kamins and Zane Weiner, with Philippa Boyens as co-producer.  The Oscar-winning, critically acclaimed “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, also from the production team of Jackson and Walsh, grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide at the box office. In 2003, “The Return of the King” swept the Academy Awards, winning all of the 11 categories in which it was nominated, including Best Picture – the first ever Best Picture win for a fantasy film. The trilogy’s production was also unprecedented at the time.

Among the creative behind-the-scenes team returning to Jackson’s crew are director of photography Andrew Lesnie, production designer Dan Hennah, conceptual designers Alan Lee and John Howe, composer Howard Shore and make-up and hair designer Peter King.  Costumes are designed by Ann Maskrey and Richard Taylor.

Taylor is also overseeing the design and production of weaponry, armour and prosthetics which are once again being made by the award winning Weta Workshop.  Weta Digital take on the visual effects for both films, led by the film’s visual effects supervisor, Joe Letteri.   Post production will take place at Park Road Post Production in Wellington.

“The Hobbit” films are co-produced by New Line Cinema and MGM, with New Line managing production.  Warner Bros Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television licensing being handled by MGM.  The two films are planned for release in late 2012 and 2013, respectively.