Despite the behind-the-scenes involvement of Peter Jackson and the filming location of New Zealand, Guillermo del Toro has given further hints that his adaptation of The Hobbit will be distinctly different to Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Although there will be congruence, the Mexican auteur looks set to make sure that the two new Tolkien films will be marked by his unique touch.
Speaking to The Times, the Hellboy helmer elaborated on how he’ll be looking to draw upon his fascination with fairytales and mythology and how the new duology will fit in with Jackson’s works.
“I’m trying to be faithful to what I read when I was young. That’s The Hobbit I’m serving. I cannot serve a Peter Jackson film. We also hope to bridge the trilogy. We will create an expansion of what lies in the four books and in a number of appendices. I’m not going to New Zealand for two years to do one movie. I’m going there for four years.”
It’ll be interesting to see how del Toro handles the material and how the production will unfold both in terms of visuals and story. Such statements certainly give a good indication that del Toro is passionate about the project and that, with his folklore fascination and characteristic creativity, he is an excellent choice to bring Tolkien’s book to life.
An effective blending of Jackson’s work with the Mexican director’s Pan’s Labyrinth sensibility is certainly a tantalising prospect.
One Comment
This makes sense. There’s no point in getting a talented, visionary director involved if he’s just going to parrot the technique of another director.
I have no doubt that Del Toro’s Hobbit will be pleasing to Jackson’s fans. But, it will be its own thing and that’s fine. The only thing I’m concerned about is the expansion of the original story – the adaptation of the original novel should be great.