Huckleberries Online

Gerard Butler In ‘The Hobbit’?

Posted by DFO

Dec. 18, 2009 5:44 p.m. • 6 comments

If I were casting, and casting famous names, here’s who I’d pick: Bilbo Baggins: Michael Sheen. I’ve always thought there was something a tad elven about Sheen (and doesn’t Tolkien note somewhere that the hobbits are very distant relatives of the elves?). Next best: James McAvoy would be great. David Tennant would be superb. Simon Pegg might make me keel over in fangirl ecstasy and die a happy death (though not till after I’d seen the movie, obviously). Gandalf: Ian McKellen, obviously, since he’s already played the role in three films. And director Guillermo Del Toro has also already confirmed that the actor will be back/Maryann Johanson, Film.com. More here.

Question: Who would you cast in the leading roles of Peter Jackson’s ‘Hobbit’?

Six comments on this post so far. Add yours!

spokelooneh on December 18 at 7:03 p.m.
Danny Devito.
Phaedrus on December 18 at 8:57 p.m.
Mike Kennedy
JamesBond on December 18 at 9:12 p.m.
Mickey Rourke should play Smaug the Dragon.

Gary Coleman for Bilbo!
Sisyphus on December 19 at 12:22 p.m.
Sheen would be a perfect Bilbo. MacAvoy is too elven. He should play Elrond. Smaug has to be James Earl Jones doesn’t he?

I hope they get Jackson as far away from the creative aspects as possible. His renditions of the Rings, while spectacular in some parts, detracted significantly from Tolkien. The ‘autumnal’ aspect was waaaay overdone and removed the wonder surrounding Middle Earth. And he gutted the story when he didn’t include the scouring of the shire. Wasn’t even in the extended version. They don’t bear up under repeat watching.

The Hobbit is a great story. I hope it doesn’t get ruined.
JamesBond on December 19 at 3:00 p.m.
If it’s just voice, James Earl Jones would be great, but I was really hoping they’d just put some wings on the back of Mickey Rourke and actually let him play the dragon.

Lotsa dwarves in the main party in The Hobbit.

Who was it that played Bilbo in the flashback scenes to when he found the ring? If you go back and watch that scene in Lord of the Rings, it was not the same actor as the guy who played Bilbo in the regular story. I have always been confused by why they used different actors, and whether they would use the flashback actor in The Hobbit.
Sisyphus on December 19 at 3:38 p.m.
Ian Holm played the old Bilbo character and he might even swing a young Bilbo since he’s pretty versatile. Not sure about the flashback scene, I thought that was Ian Holm with makeup. You sure you’re not mixing that up with the young Gollum scene? I was thinking Smaug’s voice needs to be cunning and devious as well as authoritatively fearsome. John Hurt would be good.

Filling out the four groups of dwarf brothers will be a task. They could have some fun with that since they make an almost comedic ensemble. Thorin will be the toughest to cast cause he’s central to the story. In addition to Sarsgaard, it looks like they’re considering Brian Cox. I think Cox would be a better fit. I laughed at one suggestion for Daniel Day Lewis. I’m thinking for that role they should go with a star but the rest they can save money on. It’ll also be interesting how they handle the elves of the old forest who are considerably more course than their Rivendell brethren.

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About this blog

D.F. Oliveria is a columnist and blogger for The Spokesman-Review. Huckleberries Online was judged the best 2008 Idaho newspaper blog by the Idaho Press Club. And the best 2007 news blog in the Pacific Northwest by the Society for Professional Journalist. Print Huckleberries is a past winner of the Herb Caen Memorial Column contest by the National Association of Newspaper Columnists. The Readership Institute of Northwestern University cited this blog as a good example of online community journalism.