Sam Raimi Will Direct The Hobbit?
Written by Robert Sanchez
Sunday, 28 January 2007
There has been speculation about this since last November but according to a major newspaper, Sam "Spider-Man" Raimi is considering directing The Hobbit.
Last November, TheOneRing.net reported that Sam was a potential replacement for Peter Jackson since he and the studio could not "make nice". Now the LA Times is quoting sources that say that Sam is indeed looking to travel to Middle Earth once he is done with Spiderman 3.
LA Times has the following:
In a move that would have ramifications for several major multi-nationals, and millions of fans, "Spider-Man" maestro Sam Raimi has been telling associates, as well as his corporate masters at Sony, that he is thinking of directing "The Hobbit," the prequel to J.R.R. Tolkien's masterwork, "The Lord of the Rings." At least two top-level insiders who declined to be named -- have heard the words out of the director's mouth.
A year ago, such a swap of franchises would have been unthinkable, given that Peter Jackson co-wrote and directed the Oscar-winning "Rings" trilogy, but that was before the slugfest erupted between the once-rotund director and New Line honcho Bob Shaye.
Jackson is suing the studio over money he says is owed to him from the the "Rings" films, which grossed more than $3 billion at the box office and another $1 billion on DVD. In the last few weeks, Shaye has declared Jackson persona-non-grata at New Line, stating publicly that, "He will never make any movie with New Line Cinema again while I'm still working at the company."
According to a New Line source, the studio isn't just contemplating one "Hobbit" movie, but two. The prequel tells the story of hobbit Bilbo Baggins and how he first discovers the magical but sinister ring, the very object that drives the action in "Lord of the Rings."
Still, while Raimi might be an irresistable replacement for Jackson, his ascension to the directing chair is far from a sure thing. New Line says it doesn't have a deal with the director, and Raimi hasn't met with Shaye or production president Toby Emmerich. More potentially problematic is the fact that MGM owns the distribution rights to the film. An MGM spokeman insists that MGM remains firmly in the Jackson camp: "We support Peter Jackson, and when the dust settles, we believe he is the one who will be making this movie."
A call to Raimi's office was directed to his agent, Richard Lovett, at CAA. The agency did not comment.
For Sony, losing Raimi who gave "Spider-Man" its distinctive visual theatrics would be a blow. Studio chief Amy Pascal has said she wants to make six installments of the "Spider-Man" tale. Just this week, the studio announced it was rehiring David Koepp, who wrote the first film, to write "Spider-Man 4."
These could be all speculation or maybe the LA Times is just rehashing old rumors. We will keep on this story and let you know what we find out. The real question is, would Bruce Campbell have a cameo?
. Besides the evil dead movies and darkman. Im not that big a fan of Sams.
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It is linked in the sticky
