Do we know when the expected release date is? I heard its somewhere is 2012.

I believe the first installment is still planned for Winter of 2012 (hopefully before the End of the World ).

GB

^^ hahaha
That made me laugh.

I wonder where the will cut off the first film and where they will start the second. The Hobbit isn't divided nicely for the film makers like LotR was.

Back when Del Toro was still on board, he made some sort of comment that the dividing point would be in the "obvious" place . But it's not really apparent to me either.

GB

Today Simon Pegg explained what he meant about Martin Freeman getting the part. It turns out it was just a poor choice of wording. From his verified Twitter account --

Woah, woah, woah I did NOT confirm Martin Freeman was in The Hobbit. As far as I know, talks are ongoing. Hope he is. Great choice.

Darn. I was hoping he was finally cast...

I guess we'll have to wait a little longer to find out... I hope so badly that he gets it, though!

~Riella

Argg... I want to know who will play Bilbo

^^ I know how you feel!

Ugh, I feel like starting a prayer group that Martin Freeman will get the part, haha. That might be a little odd... Not that I haven't been praying about it this whole time anyway.

Oh, and I did see an article that said ian McKellan wouldn't be coming back. At first I wondered if I had just dreamed it, but now I remember it wasn't a dream. I just wish I could remember where I saw it. Or if it was accurate...

What part in The Hobbit movie are you looking forward to seeing most?

~Riella

Martin Freeman is a very good actor but I've only seen him in English comedies - TV series and movies like: The Office, Red Dwarf, The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Hot Fuzz, Hardware, Shaun of the Dead and Black Books.

Even from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I could see him as a good Bilbo though. His character, Arthur Dent is slightly similar to Bilbo -- the reactions to similar situations. They are both taken on an adventure sort of against their will, too, haha.
I think he would be great in the part.

~Riella

I believe the first installment is still planned for Winter of 2012 (hopefully before the End of the World ).

GB

did you just say winter 2012?????

WHAT? we have to wait that long????
*bangs head on wall*
NO!!!!!

Back when Del Toro was still on board, he made some sort of comment that the dividing point would be in the "obvious" place . But it's not really apparent to me either.

GB

lol why do I have the feeling that they'll have Bilbo enter the cave and a dragon's voice will like say something and thats the end of the first movie?

LOL, sillygoose. Maybe they will end it right after

Spoiler

Smaug dies and the armies begin to gather.

That would be an awful cliffhanger; I sure hope that's not where they split it!

That could be a great ending Sillygoose! The suspense would be horrible

I always thought it'd be cool to end

I believe the first installment is still planned for Winter of 2012 (hopefully before the End of the World ).

Haha, I remember when they announced the date Del Toro mentioned that people would get to see the Hobbit before the end of the World

I hope we casting announcements soon too. I'm hoping for either Martin Freeman or James McAvoy for Bilbo (Although I'm pretty sure he already said he's not going to be in it, I still hope for some reason ) I also saw in this article...

http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2010/10/16/39174-james-nesbitt-has-major-hobbit-role/

...that James Nesbitt has a role in The Hobbit, rumored Bofur. He looks like he could do great as a dwarf! (I was kinda hoping he'd be Thorin though, but I guess not) What do y'all think?

My pick for the end to the first Hobbit movie was the barrel ride too. It's a nice cliffhanger moment. The only problem is that it means pretty much all of the action will be crammed into the last movie. I would assume the assault on Dol Guldur would take place in the second movie, as well as the battle at the Lonely Mountain and the slaying of Smaug.

Well Bookwyrm, compare the action in The Fellowship of the Ring to The Return of the King, or the Two Towers for that matter.

They might be trying to go for the same kind of thing.
But there will be the fight in the caverns and when they are stuck in the trees and the spiders