Ian McKellen Would Do Hobbit With Or Without Jackson

Internet fanboyism (of which I am a proud member) has some serious drawbacks, not the least of which is to seriously misquote an actor or filmmaker, and then spread the missinformation with a mob like mentality until it’s just accepted as “common knowledge” ever though it was never true in the first place. Take Ian McKellen‘s potential involvement in The Hobbit for example:

Some time ago, McKellen was quoted as saying that basically he thinks Peter Jackson should direct The Hobbit and that it would be a shame if he didn’t. Some how… Some way… Jackson fans took that statement and started running with “IAN MCKELLEN REFUSES TO DO THE HOBBIT UNLESS PETER JACKSON DRECTS IT”, when in actuality he said nothing of the sorts.

SCIFI is now quoting McKellen as saying:

“I would be disappointed if they didn’t want to have the original Gandalf. I suppose if I am still functioning and working well, it is very likely I would be asked to do it, and if I were, I would be very pleased to do it.”

So there you have it. Jackson directing The Hobbit or not… if McKellen is asked to come back as Gandalf, he’ll do it

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14 thoughts on “Ian McKellen Would Do Hobbit With Or Without Jackson

  1. Sorry to derail you all back on to the real topic but, Kristina, there is plenty of action in The Hobbit. Haven’t you ever seen the animated Rankin/Bass adaptation? There are orc fights, giant eagle flights, barrel-riding, wood elf escaping, giant evil spider killing (a la Shelob), Bear man shapechanging, Dragon riddling, fire engulfing towns, and Dragon slaying. Not to mention The Battle of Five Armies.

    It will be as action heavy as LOTR is, if not more. And as it will portray characters who will be communicating with each other, I admit there will be at least some “talky-talky”.

    Fools.

  2. okay, okay it may be dead for now, but it will come back to life and i think it will be pretty soon….oh and are you sure about the Jackson not directing it…..I’ve read that Jackson is directing it and i have read that Blomkamp was directing it…..Either way, i would love to see Jackson do The Hobbit and Halo. I would just love for the Halo film get made.

  3. Hey Spence,

    Oh it’s dead. From Blomkamp’s own mouth:

    “The film is entirely dead. In the configuration it was in. Whatever happens with that movie, assuming that movie gets made, will be a totally different configuration. It’s not so much me as the entire vessel sank. Basically, it was a combination of; there were two studios involved that weren’t getting along in the process of making it, Universal and Fox. That kind of stuff happens, it’s a fragile industry. So the film collapsed at the end of last year, and it’s been dead, ever since then.”

    Fox bought the merch rights… nothing to do with the “movie”, and as has been shown on other sites, the amount of Halo 3 games sold isn’t even close enough to justify a movie. This thing is dead.

    It WILL come back to life at some point… no doubt. But it’s RIP for now… and when it does come back… Jackson will still have little to nothing to do with its creation no matter what the press releases say

  4. John, my ignorant friend, there is a Halo movie. Bungie (the creators of the Halo franchise) have already confirmed that it is getting made. Don’t pull the same “there is no” crap that you did with Indiana Jones 4 with Halo.

  5. That’s not really anything new or surprising. Keep in mind, McKellan did X-MEN 3 despite the absense of his director and friend Bryan Singer.

    Can’t say I blame Sir Ian either way. He enjoys playing the character and here is another opportunity to do so. All power to him.

  6. Hey @spence and Andrew,

    There is no Halo Movie. And even if there was (which there isn’t), Jackson isn’t doing anything on it. He’s just an Exec Producer. He’s not writing it or directing it.

  7. I read the book a long time ago and can barely remember it. It dont have half as much action as the LOTR movies. So i think there will be alot of “talky talky” at i think….I dont think it will meet or top the box office gross of any LOTR movies. Also, I am with Andrew, if Jackson does take on The Hobbit, i REALLY hope that it dont push back the Halo movie…..but it probably would.

  8. I’m gonna sound very ignorant here, but here goes…..does The Hobbit have as much “action” as LOTR? I’m not just talking about some sweet Pelennor Fields action, but….how can I put this….an exciting plot, I guess. I haven’t read The Hobbit, but I’m getting some odd feeling that this film is going to be a bunch of talky talky. Not that talky talky is a BAD thing necessarily, but after the whirlwind that LOTR put me through, I find it hard to believe that The Hobbit can meet or top that, and if it doesn’t, I can imagine the box office grosses for this one being significantly lower than any one of the LOTR films.

    Now, like I said, I haven’t read the book, so for anyone who has, feel free to set me straight if I’m off-base here.

  9. Yeah. I just hope that if Jackson decides to direct The Hobbit, it won’t push back on the Halo movie. (Sorry John, I just never really cared for Lord of the Rings.)

    But, if Sir Ian McKellen wants to come back or not, that’s his choice, not ours. Hopefully Lord of the Rings fanboys/fangirls can stop bitching now.

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