Classy Fanart for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Really wicked cool. When I first saw this, I was totally floored.

I'm gonna update when I find out who the artist is. In the meantime, here are the other photos. Which could've made J.R.R. Tolkien a proud poppa.

Thranduil

Thorin Oakenshield

Oh and why does the humanized Smaug look so much like Benedict Cumberbatch. Oh yes, because Khan is going to be voicing that terrible dragon.

"The Hobbit" Ventures to Top of Philippines Weekend Box Office

MANILA, Dec. 17, 2012 – “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” a production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), soared to the top of Philippine box office in its opening weekend, earning P55-million on more than 300 screens, including six IMAX theatres. That figure represents the biggest opening ever for any film in the canon of “The Lord of the Rings.”

The announcement was made today by Francis Soliven, General Manager of Warner Bros. (F.E.), Inc.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is the acclaimed first film in Oscar®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson’s epic “The Hobbit” Trilogy, based on the timeless novel by J.R.R. Tolkien. Shot in 3D 48 frames-per-second, the film was released in High Frame Rate 3D (HFR 3D) in select theaters, other 2D and 3D formats, and IMAX®.

Soliven stated, “Peter Jackson and his team of actors and filmmakers have delivered another superb film in the canon he established with ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Trilogy. Audiences everywhere have been excited by the prospect of returning to Middle-earth and these results speak to the incredible enthusiasm out there for this new adventure.”

In the U.S., “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” dominated the weekend with an estimated $84.775 million domestically and $138.2 million internationally, for a worldwide estimated total of $223 million, including a record-breaking $15.1 from IMAX theatres worldwide. Domestically, the film broke records for largest December opening in motion picture history, including Christmas/holiday weekends.

Back in the Philippines, the top-performing cinemas are SM Mall of Asia (P4.16-M), SM North EDSA (P3.16-M), Trinoma (P3.00-M), Greenbelt 3 (P2.22-M), SM Cebu (P2.16-M), Glorietta 4 (P2.02-M), SM Megamall (P1.82-M), Power Plant (P1.73-M), Newport (P1.64-M) and Eastwood (P1.53-M).

They are followed closely by Alabang Town Center (P1.41-M), Gateway (P1.242-M), SM Southmall (P1.241-M), Robinsons Galleria (P994,816), SM Clark (P940,995), Shang Cineplex (P916,080), Robinsons Ermita (P850,310), Ayala Cebu (P849,474), Robinsons Magnolia (P845,407) and Theatremall (P782,932).

From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of a trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The three films tell a continuous story set in Middle-earth 60 years before “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.”

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy, with Martin Freeman in the central role of Bilbo Baggins, and Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield. Also reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” in “The Hobbit” Trilogy are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Ian Holm as Old Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; and Andy Serkis as Gollum. The international ensemble cast of the Trilogy also includes James Nesbitt, Ken Stott, Sylvester McCoy, Barry Humphries, Aidan Turner, Dean O’Gorman, Graham McTavish, Adam Brown, Peter Hambleton, John Callen, Mark Hadlow, Jed Brophy, William Kircher, Stephen Hunter, Lee Pace, Benedict Cumberbatch, Manu Bennett and Conan Stevens.

The screenplay for “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is by Fran Walsh & Philippa Boyens & Peter Jackson & Guillermo del Toro, based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien. Jackson also produced the film, together with Carolynne Cunningham, Zane Weiner and Fran Walsh. The executive producers are Alan Horn, Toby Emmerich, Ken Kamins and Carolyn Blackwood, with Boyens and Eileen Moran serving as co-producers.



The creative behind-the-scenes team returning to Jackson’s crew included director of photography Andrew Lesnie, production designer Dan Hennah, conceptual designers Alan Lee and John Howe, editor Jabez Olssen, and makeup and hair designer Peter Swords King. The costumes were designed by Ann Maskrey, Richard Taylor and Bob Buck. Taylor also oversaw the design and production of armour, weapons, creatures and special makeup, which were once again made by the award-winning Weta Workshop. Weta Digital took on the visual effects for the film, led by senior visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri. The visual effects supervisor was Eric Saindon, with David Clayton serving as animation supervisor. The film features the song “Song of the Lonely Mountain,” performed by Neil Finn.

New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Present a WingNut Films Production, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.” All three films in “The Hobbit” Trilogy, also including “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” and the final film, “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” are productions of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), with New Line managing production. Warner Bros. Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television distribution being handled by MGM.

Movie Review - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Peter Jackson's new film "The Hobbit" brings us back to Middle Earth and takes us on a completely new yet slightly familiar journey together with a mish-mash of old and new characters.

This time however the adventure is shown through the eyes of Bilbo Baggins, the uncle of Frodo Baggins (of Lord of the Rings fame). Baggins is played by Martin Freeman......

I’ve always said time and time again that I hated dwarves be it in comics, movies and whatever, the only two exceptions when it comes to dwarves comes in the form of Snow White’s seven and the dwarves from “The Hobbit”. Seeing “The Hobbit” last night reaffirmed my love for these dwarves, if not even ranked it up higher for me.

Richard Armitage is Thorin in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"

British actor Richard Armitage (“Captain America: The First Avenger”) is on the verge of Hollywood stardom as he portrays the legendary Dwarf warrior Thorin Oakenshield, in Peter Jackson's “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.”

Thorin is the direct descendent of the line of Durin, the Dwarf Kings of Middle-earth. He is also King-in-waiting to the throne of Erebor, who witnessed the kingdom’s destruction under the dragon Smaug’s terrifying onslaught, losing both his father Thráin and grandfather Thrór in the aftermath.

“Thorin inherited a quest of vengeance from his father, to reclaim what’s theirs and take his people back to Erebor,” Armitage says. “And that burden is quite a lonely thing to carry. Thráin disappeared trying to do the same thing a hundred years ago. So Thorin feels like it’s now or never. I think he’s like a dying ember. He has the potential to reignite into a huge furnace, but if he doesn’t do it now, that ember will die.

Martin Freeman is Bilbo Baggins in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"

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.

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.”

Adventure Beckons in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"

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.

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" Character 101

Get to know the characters in director Peter Jackson’s eagerly anticipated “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of a trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.



BILBO BAGGINS (Martin Freeman). 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.

Funko "The Hobbit" Pop Vinyl now Available!

A quick visit to Comicx Hub and Castle Geek gave us a look at the Funko Pop Vinyl figures featuring the characters from "The Hobbit".

Oh my god these critters are so cute. I really wish I had the budget for these things. Would've gotten Gandalf and Gollum.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Main Poster Revealed

Warner Bros., New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures have just unveiled the main one-sheet art for “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of Peter Jackson's trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.

The three films tell a continuous story set in Middle-earth 60 years before “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.”

New Trailer for The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey

A new trailer has been released for the first installment of the prequel trilogy "The Hobbit" by Peter Jackson.

Peter Jackson's Long Awaited Adaptation of the Hobbit Now Becomes a Trilogy

New Line Cinema, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, and Warner Bros. Pictures Announce Third Film in The Hobbit Trilogy

The Hobbit Gets a Comic-Con 2012 Poster

Just sharing a cool looking poster for New Line's "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" which will be exclusive to San Diego Comic-Con 2012.

It Feels like 2001 All Over Again with the Trailer for The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey

The new trailer for The Lord of the Rings prequel The Hobbit has been officially released and it looks awesome. Suddenly I feel like its 2001 all over again with us geeking out over this movie just like how LOTR Fellowship of the Ring did when it was released.

The new movie is directed by Peter Jackson with a complete title "The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey". The film stars Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, the uncle of LOTR lead Frodo Baggins (played by Elijah Wood).