From Maxim and World Entertainment News: Guillermo Del Toro has promised Lord Of The Rings fans his franchise prequel The Hobbit will be very different from his directing predecessor Peter Jackson. Jackson directed the three original films, but has given up his director’s chair for Del Toro. But Del Toro has refused to follow in Jackson’s footsteps, vowing to give movie fans something new. He tells Maxim magazine, “If I thought it was about following (Jackson), I wouldn’t be doing it this way. “It’s a matter of raising on it. I think The Hobbit has a peculiar sprit in relation to not only the trilogy, but also to Tolkein’s work. “It’ll have respect for what’s been done, but also its own individuality.”
It may not be only movie maker Peter Jackson’s King Kong who has a head for heights in New York – the movie magnate himself is believed to have bought a $23 million penthouse in Manhattan. Under the headline One Penthouse Duplex to Rule Them All, the New York Observer today reported that the names of Jackson’s staff appeared in records tracking the purchase. “The filmmaker’s executive assistant Matthew Dravitzki, his New Zealand-based attorney Michael Stephens and his Hollywood power lawyer Peter Nelson are all listed in city records on twin penthouse purchases in Tribeca,” the newspaper said. “It seems likely that Mr Jackson has some new New York real estate.” Peter Jackson in rumoured $23m NY penthouse buy
With a trademark eye for detail, film-maker Peter Jackson has hired an astronomer to ensure the moon’s position in his movie Dambusters is spot-on. A full moon was key to the May 1943 Dambusters raids, in which Allied planes bombed German dams at night. Former Carter Observatory senior astronomer Brian Carter, not related to the founding Carter family, was asked to research the moon’s position over Germany at the time. “Somebody just rang up. I didn’t realise it was for Peter Jackson until later.” Mr Carter has since been made redundant from the observatory and has set up a paid service providing information about celestial events. Computer software allows him to find where the moon was at any time, anywhere on the globe. Moon gives light to Jackson film
Peter Jackson has finished filming The Lovely Bones, and is now moving on to producing the first Tintin film as well as The Dambusters.
Actor Andy Serkis, who will play Captain Haddock in the Tintin films, told BBC radio that filming will begin in September in Los Angeles, with Spielberg as director and Jackson as producer. Serkis, best known for Gollum in The Lord of the Rings, said Jackson will direct the second Tintin adventure, and Jackson and Spielberg may jointly direct the third.
From the Otago Daily Times: Reader’s Digest commissioned an independent research firm to survey a representative sample of 500 New Zealand adults. The Most Trusted survey asked respondents about three categories: individuals, professions and brands.
“Cuddly filmmaker Peter Jackson is right up there at 14, while Queen Elizabeth ties with Richie McCaw at 20th equal just ahead of food-in-a- minute merchant Allyson Gofton and Hayley Westenra.”
Most Trusted? Well, if a man is willing to bare his soul… or the soles of his feet, he’s pretty much an open book.
Can’t quite visualize that? Believe it or not, that’s one of the many casting rumors that was sent to TORn in June of 1999, reported in the Sunday Star Times no less. Now that the casting rumor mill has started anew for The Hobbit and ‘F2,’ message board member diedye thought it would be fun to re-visit some of the old news reported on TORn in times past. Do you remember the first photos of Sam and Frodo on Mt. Doom from June of 2000? Did you know Bruce Willis was rumored to have petitioned PJ for a part in LOTR? With a few items sprinkled in from Tolkien’s letters and other sources, this makes for a fun trip down memory lane. Stay tuned for regular installments! Read the rest of this entry »
Red tape could be the only thing between film director Peter Jackson and the expansion of his Miramar-based movie-making studios. A stretch of land on the Miramar Peninsula, encompassing the run-down former defence base at Shelly Bay and Wellington Prison, has been tipped as the scene of Jackson’s next development. The land is owned by the Defence Force, Corrections Department and Wellington City Council. But the lands trust for Te Atiawa, the Tenths Trust, is negotiating with the Government for the return of land as part of its Treaty of Waitangi claim. Tenths Trust looking for Jackson deal
Thanks to Ringer Mallory A for sending us this tidbit from IMDB.com today:
Edward Norton has credited blockbuster trilogy The Lord Of The Rings with convincing him to accept his role in big-budget movie The Incredible Hulk. The star, noted for roles in edgier films such as Fight Club and American History X, was hesitant to take on the big screen comic book adaptation. But he insists it was filmmaker Peter Jackson’s version of epic fantasy series The Lord of the Rings that helped him make his decision.
Seán writes: The interview in the upcoming Empire is presented in a preview on empireonline.com: On Bilbo: “In writing the part I obviously am thinking Old Bilbo and Ian Holm. We are writing based on that performance, but other than that, we have ideas. I can tell you that it’s down to a few names that we all agree upon. And that our first choice…completely, magically we said the same name. All of us! We said this is the guy we would talk to, but until the pages are there you have to let the character tell you who he wants to be played by. You can expect at least a year before we announce any casting.”
Future “Hobbit” director Guillermo del Toro and former “Lord of the Rings” director Peter Jackson sat down with a world-wide internet audience and answered a lot more than the announced “20 questions” this weekend.
Hosted by Weta, there were a lot of minor details and significant confirmations and revelations about the gigantic production that will yield two “Hobbit” related movies, one in 2011 and the second in 2012.
Peter Jackson said,
“2009 will be dedicated to pre-production on both movies and 2010 will be the year we shoot both films back to back. Post productin follows one film at a time with The Hobbit being released Dec(ember) 2011, and F2 (film two) release(d) Dec(ember) 2012.”
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From Maxim and World Entertainment News: Guillermo Del Toro has promised Lord Of The Rings fans his franchise prequel The Hobbit will be very different from his directing predecessor Peter Jackson. Jackson directed the three original films, but has given up his director’s chair for Del Toro. But Del Toro has refused to follow in Jackson’s footsteps, vowing to give movie fans something new. He tells Maxim magazine, “If I thought it was about following (Jackson), I wouldn’t be doing it this way. “It’s a matter of raising on it. I think The Hobbit has a peculiar sprit in relation to not only the trilogy, but also to Tolkein’s work. “It’ll have respect for what’s been done, but also its own individuality.”
With a trademark eye for detail, film-maker Peter Jackson has hired an astronomer to ensure the moon’s position in his movie Dambusters is spot-on. A full moon was key to the May 1943 Dambusters raids, in which Allied planes bombed German dams at night. Former Carter Observatory senior astronomer Brian Carter, not related to the founding Carter family, was asked to research the moon’s position over Germany at the time. “Somebody just rang up. I didn’t realise it was for Peter Jackson until later.” Mr Carter has since been made redundant from the observatory and has set up a paid service providing information about celestial events. Computer software allows him to find where the moon was at any time, anywhere on the globe. 
Red tape could be the only thing between film director Peter Jackson and the expansion of his Miramar-based movie-making studios. A stretch of land on the Miramar Peninsula, encompassing the run-down former defence base at Shelly Bay and Wellington Prison, has been tipped as the scene of Jackson’s next development. The land is owned by the Defence Force, Corrections Department and Wellington City Council. But the lands trust for Te Atiawa, the Tenths Trust, is negotiating with the Government for the return of land as part of its Treaty of Waitangi claim. 
Seán writes: The interview in the upcoming Empire is presented in a preview on 
