Articles & Interviews

Links and/or full scans of Hobbit-related articles and interviews (I realize this page is over 6 months behind in updates. For now you can scroll through the main news page as I link to everything from there):

2012

  • Nov 23 – An interview with Richard Armitage in the Spanish magazine Acción Cine reveals a little more about the emotional burdens which Thorin carries throughout the films, and how real life pain may have improved his audition.
    • – Interview with Ian McKellen in stuff.co.nz reveals the beginning of the relationship between Bilbo and Gandalf which may or may not make it to the screen.
  • Nov 22 – An interview with Richard Armitage in the Dominion Post discusses the changes the character of Thorin goes through during the course of the trilogy.
  • Nov 21 – Video interview in the NZHerald with Mark Hadlow(in Dori costume) talks briefly about the Hobbit film.
    • Ian McKellen talks about returning to the role of Gandalf, from the NZHerald.
  • Nov 20 – Radio interview with Neil Finn about “Song of the Lonely Mountain”.
  • Nov 19 – Stuff.co.nz – Philippa Boyens gives insight on learning to love The Hobbit
  • Nov 18 – richardarmitagecentral.co.uk has scans of the Hobbit articles in the Sunday Times (Nov 18).
  • Nov 16 – Ian McKellen talks to Readers Digest about the emphasis on comedy in The Hobbit.
  • Nov 16 – Stuff.co.nz – Philippa Boyens gives insight into why she feels the Hobbit is special.
  • Nov 13 – Philippa Boyens and Andy Serkis on tone and pace of three films in SFX.
  • Nov 11 – Interview with Martin Freeman in Stuff.co.nz.

  • Oct 30 – Peter Jackson discusses changes made to the 48 fps footage post CinemaCon.
  • Oct 29 – James Nesbitt talks briefly about Bofur in Mirror.co.uk.
  • Oct 28 – Ian McKellen blogs about 3D cameras.
  • Oct – Added scans of interviews with each dwarf actor from Empire magazine.
  • Oct 25 – A group of journalists were invited to visit the set earlier this year and have only now been able to release their reports:  The following group of interviews are taken from that event and many use the same quotes.
    -Collider.com has the least edited versions which provide the most information:
    Richard Armitage
    Martin Freeman
    Peter Jackson
    Ian McKellen
    Richard Taylor
    70 things about The Hobbit (Set Visit)

    • – ComingSoon.net: From the Set – Some background info on each dwarf.
    • – From Cinemablend.com comes the Guide to Recognizing Your Dwarves.  There is overlap with the previously mentioned articles, but also more info about some of the dwarves which has not appeared in the list below (use the links toward the bottom of each page to get to the next dwarf).
  • Oct 24 – Update from Ian McKellen about why he returned to Middle-earth
  • Oct 22 – Interview with Martin Freeman on Radio Times.
  • Oct 17 – Interview with Ian McKellen on The Hollywood Reporter
  • Oct 16 – Article in the Hollywood Reporter
  • Oct 15 – Interview with Hugo Weaving mentions Hobbit filming.
  • Oct 10 – Second audio interview with Mark Hadlow on ABC.net.au
  • Oct 9 – Audio interview with Mark Hadlow on ABC.net.au
  • Sept 28 – Interview with William Kircher in Stuff.co.nz
  • Sept 24 – Interview with Billy Connolly in The Vulture
  • Sept 24 – Interview with James Nesbitt in The Telegraph
  • Sept 19 – Interview with James Nesbitt in The Metro
  • Aug 12 – New Bilbo images and brief article in (August 24) Entertainment Weekly
  • July 30 – Peter Jackson announces the Hobbit will be a trilogy
  • July – Empire interview with Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis
  • July 17 –  Lep.co.uk – A personal trainer on the film reveals the challenges of keeping The Hobbit’s dwarves up and running.
  • July 16 – Collection of Video Interviews from Comic-Con
  • July 16 – Collection of Spoilers from Comic-Con film footage
  • July 15 – Article in Collider with Peter Jackson, Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis
  • July 13 – Entertainment Weekly – The Hobbit Issue
  • June – Billy Connolly drops hints as to the personality of Dain Ironfoot in several interviews, so many in fact that they have merited their own page!
  • June – Total Film (Summer) – The New Faces of the Hobbit
  • May – Ian McKellen discusses recognizing his duty of reprising the role of Gandalf for The Hobbit at www.scene.co.nz
  • April 28 – The Hollywood Reporter – Peter Jackson assures the Hobbit will look “otherworldly”
  • April 27 – Entertainment Weekly – Peter Jackson responds to CinemaCon reviews
  • April – Quickbeam recaps the Spoilers from the CinemaCon footage
  • April 22 – TORn interview with Conan Stevens (formerly Azog, now Bolg)
  • April – NZHerald – Costuming Billy Connolly
  • Feb – SFX magazine (April issue) 50 things you need to know about The Hobbit
  • Feb 8 – Hollywood Reporter – Billy Connolly joins the cast
  • Jan 20 – MTV.com – Peter Jackson plans to keep The Hobbit consistent with LOTR trilogy
  • Jan 14 – LATimes – Peter Jackson and Philippa Boyens on the tone of The Hobbit
  • Jan 11 – MTV.com – Interview with Richard Armitage, the “One to Watch”

2011

  • Dec – Total Film (Feb issue) #189
  • Dec – Empire (Feb issue) interview with Martin Freeman
  • Ain’t It Cool News Reports from the Set of the Hobbit
    Part 1 – Oct 31
    Part 2 – Nov 6
    Part 3 – Nov 14
    Part 4 – Nov 24
    Part 5 – Nov 28
    Part 6 – Dec 20
  • Nov 29 – Update from Ian McKellen – Traveling through NZ
  • Nov 23 – Otago Times and NZHerald visit the Hobbit Set – pic of Beorn’s house
  • Nov 13 – Update from Ian McKellen – Gandalf vs. the Dwarves
  • Nov 1 – Movie Fone Interview with Luke Evans – on archery training for Bard
  • Oct 22 – Dwarf Steeds – Icelandic Horses being used as ponies
  • July 27 – Empire Online – The Men Behind the Dwarves – Actor and character profiles
  • July 1 – Entertainment Weekly
  • July 23 – The Scotsman – Richard Armitage talks about playing Thorin –
  • July 15 – Project Magazine – Richard Armitage talks about getting the role of Thorin
  • July 4 – Total Film (Aug issue) – Richard Armitage “Shooting Star” – “The armour that the dwarves emerge from the mountain wearing at the end of the film will be the armour of all armour.”
  • Jun 30 – Empire (Aug issue) – “If you want the straightforward answer to how Jackson discovered he wanted to make The Hobbit, it’s dwarves.  They suit him.  ‘They don’t know what to make of Gandalf, they think Bilbo is a wuss, and Elrond a prissy headmaster type,’ delights a besotted director.”
  • Jun 23 – EW.com ‘Hobbit’ First Look
  • March – Empire (April issue) – Meet the Cast of the Hobbit

2010