Guillermo Del Toro Out of The Hobbit

There were many rumors, speculations, polls, and discussions on who should star in The Hobbit. Yet, after two years of buzz and confirmed news of filming the prequel to the legendary Lord of the Rings (LOTR) Trilogy, the delays in production brings a more important news: Guillermo del Toro is officially out of the franchise. There hasn't been a significant progress brought to the media about the status of the first of the two Hobbit films other than that LOTR director Peter Jackson hopped in as executive producer and del Toro accepted the offer as the new director of the most awaited Middle Earth films to accompany LOTR.

While The Hobbit hasn't made it to the starting line of principal photography yet, del Toro already put in two years of pre-production work. His team already designed all the creatures, sets, wardrobe, animatics, and planned action sequences.

According to del Toro, the main problem has been with the money, specifically the dire financial and organizational situation of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. He also said that he faced a hard decision of his life that after two years of living, breathing, and designing a world as rich as Tokien's Middle Earth, he had to leave without actually filming them. He thanked those who worked with him in the project, particularly Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens, along with New Line and Warner Bros.

The 45-year old award-winning director/writer/producer has many projects in development. Given his preferred genre and film style, it is not a surprise that he wants to make his own Frankenstein film. He also intends to make an adaptation of the Slaughterhouse-Five. His IMDb credits show almost a dozen of in development films including Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Drood, Pinocchio, and The Witches.

The delays clearly show the not so positive direction for The Hobbit films. There were mounting pressures, conflicting schedules, and financial issues. Peter Jackson said that there is an assurance that fans will see the two films. Will this mean he will take del Toro's place? Apart from being the successful director of LOTR, his initial work as executive producer for The Hobbit makes him a good choice so that the two-year worth of pre-production work can still be of some use for the continuation of the project.

For sure, there have been many complications from creative convictions to financial issues. And for the Lord of the Rings fans, the biggest question to ask is, "Who will replace del Toro as the new helmer of The Hobbit?"

"Guillermo del Toro quits 'The Hobbit' with 'great regret' -- but what's next?," LA Times Blog.
"Guillermo del Toro," IMDb.