McKellen talks Hobbit

It seems that THE HOBBIT and its sequel aren’t moving at quite the snail’s pace it feels like. Recently, Empire talked with Sir Ian McKellen, who is returning as Gandalf, about start dates, shoot lengths and casting.

“The scripts for the two films will be delivered very soon,” he revealed. “Then they’ll be budgeted, and then they’ll be cast. And they’ll be going when they’ve always said they would be, which is next spring – March or April. Guillermo even told me at one point, ‘We’re going to film for 383 days.’ He’s got that artistic autism! Jackson’s the same; they’re very, very, very alike. They also very different, but they’ve so much in common. They both can’t stand Hollywood and have wonderful imaginations, and they’re both obsessed with gore and fantasy. Both of them laugh a great deal. Guillermo’s one of the most brilliant men I’ve ever met. His English vocabulary is way superior to mine!”

There’s been fervent speculation about the possible return of other Rings cast members, with the likes of Legolas and Aragorn in the frame for cameos, but Sir Ian isn’t convinced.

“Unforunately, there won’t be many of the actors going back,” he said, “unless they’re going to put masks on and be disguised as dwarves! Andy Serkis is, at the moment, I think, the only other actor who’s doing this film.”

So it starts next March, will take over a year to shoot, and only Andy Serkis and himself are returning. When are we actually seeing this thing, December 2011 with the next one a year after that? Sounds about right. McKellen had no other news about casting, including no speculation on who the titular Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins might end up being.

I have to admit, though I’m not a die hard fan of the series, it will be nice to have a LORD OF THE RINGS movie to look forward to again. That stretch of three years where they would come out every Christmas was pretty amazing.