Okay, probably not Sir Ian, but it was too good a headline to pass up. And it could happen. De-aging CG technology is pretty good these days. Or…who knows.
Anyway, yes, Guillermo Del Toro is reportedly in talks to direct The Hobbit and The Hobbit 2: Shire Harder (this is a working title). And no, don’t panic, they’re just chopping the story in half because it was so helpful with the quality of the The Matrix and Pirates trilogies…urg.
Excuse me. I almost choked on absolutely nothing a moment ago. Back now.
As this report makes clear, it’s not like Del Toro is hurting for projects. Hell, I still want to see his Count of Monte Cristo update that he was showing us concept art for about ten years and more ago. But will McKellen return to play Gandalf? Will any of the rest of the cast return for their cameos? Will Smaug be re-imagined as a giant bug-like creature with 114 eyes? Will Andy Serkis and Doug Jones fight each other with steak knives over who’s going to do the physical movements of certain characters? Only time will tell.