BERLIN (Reuters) :

Quote:

New Zealand film director Peter Jackson (news), tipped to win an Oscar for his "The Lord of the Rings" epic, said Monday he would like to make "The Hobbit" prequel to the trilogy and work with some of the same actors again.

Speaking to journalists in Berlin ahead of the European premiere of the last part of the "Rings" trilogy -- "The Return of the King" -- Jackson said he was sad but also relieved that the mammoth project he has worked on for seven years was over.

"I'm glad there's not a fourth Lord of the Rings film next year," he said. "I feel very tired and exhausted."

"I've been working very hard this year. It was the hardest year of the whole seven really," he said, adding that the last part had twice as many computer-generated shots as the second, "The Two Towers," which won an Oscar for digital effects.

"It's my favorite because it has a stronger emotional depth than the other two films, it has a sense of closure," he said.

Despite his exhaustion, Jackson is not resting on his laurels and said if complex rights issues can be resolved he would like to direct "The Hobbit," J.R.R. Tolkien's prequel to the "Rings" trilogy set some 50 years earlier.

"I'd be interested in doing it because I think it would give continuity to the overall chapter," he said.

While many of the lead "Rings" characters do not appear in "The Hobbit" story, the wizard Gandalf, played by Ian McKellen (news), and Gollum, the cave dweller corrupted by the powerful ring, do and should make a comeback. Arwen, the elf princess played by Liv Tyler (news), could also feature again, Jackson said.

indeed...



Last edited by mikull on Sun Aug 12, 2007 10:30 am; edited 1 time in total

Film rights wrangle may kill off The Hobbit

A WRANGLE over the film rights to The Hobbit could wreck plans for a prequel to the blockbusting Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

Oscar-winning director Peter Jackson is desperate to complete his masterpiece with one final film based on J.R.R. Tolkien's first book.

But the legalities over the film and distribution rights are threatening to derail the project – worth millions of dollars at the box office – and disappoint fans.

New Line Cinema, the company that made the Lord Of The Rings trilogy with Jackson at the helm, owns the movie rights to The Hobbit.

But the distribution rights governing the release of the film belong to United Artists, although New Line has first refusal on producing the movie.

Sir Ian McKellen, who plays wizard Gandalf in the trilogy, has revealed Jackson is trying to obtain the film rights.

"Peter wants to do it, and if he doesn't ask me I'll be very upset," McKellen said.

The New Zealand-born director had been undecided about making a film of The Hobbit, but has confirmed plans to do so.

"I'd be interested in doing it as it would give continuity to the overall chapter," he said.

The author's great-grandson, Royd Tolkien, 34, said yesterday: "I would love to see Peter Jackson make a film of The Hobbit.

"That would be the perfect ending."

I pray they make this movie.  What a great flick it would be.  I loved the Hobbit long before I love the Trilogy and it is just as good IMO.

Variety reports that it is looking increasingly likely that Time Warner will snatch in on Sony's long delayed acquisition of MGM.

Bagging the Lion would give Time Warner a nice little bonus -- worldwide theatrical and television rights to J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit." Which once obtained New Line well assembly ask “Rings” maestro Peter Jackson to take on after completing Universal’s "King Kong."

The conglom's deal is cleaner -- one buyer offering Time Warner stock -- and more tax-efficient. It would be chairman-CEO Richard Parsons' first major acquisition after a string of asset sales to cut debt.

Sony Corp. chairman Nobuyuki Idei, speaking at an event in Korea Thursday, acknowledged "some complications" in the Japanese giant's merger talks with MGM. Reuters quoted Idei as saying, "It's up to the MGM management now."

The statements, which one insider ascribed to a "lost in translation" effect, caused a mild tizzy at both companies, which are still talking -- particularly since the holdup isn't on the MGM side at all, but still resides at Sony and its two equity partners.

email from Peter Jackson and his crew sent to http://www.theonering.net/ as reported on ain't it cool. fans will want to read it- my comments at the bottom.

Quote:

Dear One Ringers,

As you know, there's been a lot of speculation about The Hobbit. We are often asked about when or if this film will ever be made. We have always responded that we would be very interested in making the film - if it were offered to us to make.

You may also be aware that Wingnut Films has bought a lawsuit against New Line, which resulted from an audit we undertook on part of the income of The Fellowship of the Ring. Our attitude with the lawsuit has always been that since it's largely based on differences of opinion about certain accounting practices, we would like an independent body - whether it be a judge, a jury, or a mediator, to look at the issues and make an unbiased ruling. We are happy to accept whatever that ruling is. In our minds, it's not much more complex than that and that's exactly why film contracts include right-to-audit clauses.

However, we have always said that we do not want to discuss The Hobbit with New Line until the lawsuit over New Line's accounting practices is resolved. This is simple common sense - you cannot be in a relationship with a film studio, making a complex, expensive movie and dealing with all the pressures and responsibilities that come with the job, while an unresolved lawsuit exists.

We have also said that we do not want to tie settlement of the lawsuit to making a film of The Hobbit. In other words, we would have to agree to make The Hobbit as a condition of New Line settling our lawsuit. In our minds this is not the right reason to make a film and if a film of The Hobbit went ahead on this basis, it would be doomed. Deciding to make a movie should come from the heart - it's not a matter of business convenience. When you agree to make a film, you're taking on a massive commitment and you need to be driven by an absolute passion to want to get the story on screen. It's that passion, and passion alone, that gives the movie its imagination and heart. To us it is not a cold-blooded business decision.

A couple of months ago there was a flurry of Hobbit news in the media. MGM, who own a portion of the film rights in The Hobbit, publicly stated they wanted to make the film with us. It was a little weird at the time because nobody from New Line had ever spoken to us about making a film of The Hobbit and the media had some fun with that. Within a week or two of those stories, our Manager Ken Kamins got a call from the co-president of New Line Cinema, Michael Lynne, who in essence told Ken that the way to settle the lawsuit was to get a commitment from us to make the Hobbit, because "that's how these things are done". Michael Lynne said we would stand to make much more money if we tied the lawsuit and the movie deal together and this may well be true, but it's still the worst reason in the world to agree to make a film.

Several years ago, Mark Ordesky told us that New Line have rights to make not just The Hobbit but a second "LOTR prequel", covering the events leading up to those depicted in LOTR. Since then, we've always assumed that we would be asked to make The Hobbit and possibly this second film, back to back, as we did the original movies. We assumed that our lawsuit with the studio would come to a natural conclusion and we would then be free to discuss our ideas with the studio, get excited and jump on board. We've assumed that we would possibly get started on development and design next year, whilst filming The Lovely Bones. We even had a meeting planned with MGM executives to talk through our schedule.

However last week, Mark Ordesky called Ken and told him that New Line would no longer be requiring our services on the Hobbit and the LOTR 'prequel'. This was a courtesy call to let us know that the studio was now actively looking to hire another filmmaker for both projects.

Ordesky said that New Line has a limited time option on the film rights they have obtained from Saul Zaentz (this has never been conveyed to us before), and because we won't discuss making the movies until the lawsuit is resolved, the studio is going to have to hire another director.

Given that New Line are committed to this course of action, we felt at the very least, we owed you, the fans, a straightforward account of events as they have unfolded for us.

We have always had the greatest support from The Ringers and we are very sorry our involvement with The Hobbit has been ended in this way. Our journey into Tolkien's world started with a phone call from Ken Kamins to Harvey Weinstein in Nov 1995 and ended with a phone call from Mark Ordesky to Ken in Nov 2006. It has been a great 11 years.

This outcome is not what we anticipated or wanted, but neither do we see any positive value in bitterness and rancor. We now have no choice but to let the idea of a film of The Hobbit go and move forward with other projects.

We send our very best wishes to whomever has the privilege of making The Hobbit and look forward to seeing the film on the big screen.

Warmest regards to you all, and thanks for your incredible support over the years.

We got to go there - but not back again ...

Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh

mikull says: how lame... i don't know who's really to blame, but it's sad to think we wouldn't see PJ complete the entire project cycle. what a disappointment.

oh, but wait- aicn said that IMDB said...

As Lord of the Rings fans mounted a protest following word that New Line had dropped Peter Jackson from consideration as director of The Hobbit and another Lord of the Rings prequel, producer Saul Zaentz has given assurances that Jackson will indeed direct the two films. A German website, Elbenwald.de, posted an interview with Zaentz, who acquired the rights to the works of the late Rings writer, J.R.R. Tolkien, in 1976 (the Saul Zaentz Company owns Tolkien Enterprises), in which Zaentz says, "It will definitely be shot by Peter Jackson. ... Next year The Hobbit rights will fall back to my company. I suppose that Peter will wait because he knows that he will make the best deal with us. And he is fed up with the studios: to get his profit share on the Rings trilogy he had to sue New Line. With us, in contrast, he knows that he will be paid fairly and artistically supported without reservation." (The preceding quotation is a translation that appeared on TheHobbit-Movie.com from the German interview posted on Elbenwald.de.)

http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?id=39462

The dirty fighting is starting between Peter Jackson and New Line. Moviehole.net reported on an interview with Bob Shaye done by Sci-Fi.com, where he rips into Jackson and says he's not welcome at New Line ever again.

He points out what Jackson has been paid so far on Rings... a lot of money... but he doesn't answer why New Line refuses to allow Jackson's representatives into the books. I believe Jackson is suing over his contracted percentage on the FELLOWSHIP DVDs, but from Jackson's letter to the fans about the situation, it sounds like he just wants to make sure he's not being short changed. So, the question still remains... If New Line is sure they've fulfilled their contractual obligation to Jackson and Co, why are they fighting this?

I guess now it's personal and Shaye is going to do his damndest to fast track HOBBIT, which is always a good reason to make a film. Here's hoping MGM, who still owns the North American distribution rights, puts their foot down and stops a hastily made HOBBIT movie. If they can filibuster New Line and Saul Zaentz gets the rights back, he's said he wants Jackson to do it.

as seen on AICN - Wingnut and Peter Jackson respond to Bob Shaye's tongue-lashings:

Quote:

Our issue with New Line Cinema has only ever been about their refusal to account for financial anomalies that surfaced from a partial audit of The Fellowship of the Ring. Contrary to recent comments made by Bob Shaye, we attempted to discuss the issues raised by the Fellowship audit with New Line for over a year but the studio was and continues to be completely uncooperative. This has compelled us to file a lawsuit to pursue our contractual rights under the law. Nobody likes taking legal action, but the studio left us with no alternative.

For over two years, New Line has denied us the ability to audit The Two Towers and The Return of the King, despite repeated requests. Film auditing is a common and straightforward practice within the industry and we don't understand why New Line Cinema has taken this position.

In light of these circumstances, I didn't think it was appropriate for me to be involved in New Line Cinema's 40th Anniversary video. I have never discussed this video with any of the cast of The Lord of the Rings. The issues that Bob Shaye has with the cast pre-date this law suit by many years.

Fundamentally, our legal action is about holding New Line to it's contractual obligations and promises. It is regrettable that Bob has chosen to make it personal. I have always had the highest respect and affection for Bob and other senior management at New Line and continue to do so.

On the eve of what is expected to be the biggest Spider-Man yet, Entertainment Weekly learns that director Sam Raimi is seriously considering directing The Hobbit—a choice that could potentially leave Spidey 4 without a director and, says Kirsten Dunst, a leading lady.

Raimi’s name has been floated in connection with The Hobbit ever since a very public dustup between Peter Jackson and New Line chairman Bob Shaye left the Lord of the Rings prequel without a director. Raimi went on the record for the first time about his potential involvement in the project during an exclusive interview with EW’s Steve Daly for the magazine’s Summer Preview issue, on stands Friday: “Peter Jackson might be the best filmmaker on the planet right now. But, um, I don’t know what’s going to happen next for me right now. First and foremost, those are Peter Jackson and Bob Shaye’s films. If Peter didn’t want to do it, and Bob wanted me to do it—and they were both ok with me picking up the reigns—that would be great. I love the book. It’s maybe a more kid-friendly story than the others.”

Dunst says she hadn’t heard any rumors about Raimi and The Hobbit until EW raised the subject in an interview. She says she can’t imagine returning for Part 4 without both her director and her costar: “It’s disrespectful to the whole team, I think, to do that. And audiences aren’t stupid. It’d be a big flop without me, Tobey, or Sam. That would really not be the smartest move. But they know that already. [Sony chief] Amy Pascal would never do that.” Maguire has already expressed his ambivalence about returning for another sequel.

Sony’s President of Production Matt Tolmach tells EW that the studio is cautiously optimistic about retaining the team that launched the Spidey franchise so spectacularly: “Listen, we’re making Spider-Man 4. Our hope, dream and intention is to do it with Sam. But I don’t have a crystal ball.”

August 10, 2007 - Is Peter Jackson back in the running to direct The Hobbit? After a tense legal battle with New Line over Lord of the Rings profits, and what amounts to a public war of words with New Line honcho Bob Shaye, it didn't seem likely. But relations between Jackson and Shaye/New Line may be thawing.

The Los Angeles Times spoke with Shaye who admitted that New Line insiders have been in talks with Jackson's reps to try and make amends. "Yes, that's a fair statement," said Shaye when quizzed about it. "Notwithstanding our personal quarrels, I really respect and admire Peter and would love for him to be creatively involved in some way in The Hobbit."

Meanwhile, the New Zealand-based Stuff.co.nz website adds to the reinvigorated Jackson/Hobbit buzz with a fresh quote from Gandalf actor Ian McKellen who said at a news conference on Thursday that there was no doubt that a rumored reprisal of his role in The Hobbit would be discussed with Jackson and partner Fran Walsh.

The site also quotes a Jackson spokesman as saying, "Peter and Fran have always wanted to do The Hobbit but whether that happens is yet to be decided."

Should Jackson and New Line kiss and make up, the long list of rumored Hobbit helmers whose names have been bandied about for months would become moot. Sam Raimi, Peter Weir, Stephen Sommers, Michael Bay, Brad Silberling and Bill Condon are all rumored contenders.

I hope that Peter Jackson does "The Hobbit", I mean "Transformers" was good and all, but Michael Bay????....that would be bizarre.

Picking up a ring and frolicking with hobbits made Peter Jackson a mega-star director, and everyone wondered if he would go back to the days of the The Hobbit after finishing The Lord of the Rings. Not quite. As I'm sure you remember, he doesn't think he was paid all that he should, and he and New Line started warring. From there, things went all over the place and everyone weighed in. Here are some of the reports -- he was blacklisted, he responded, Bob Shaye calmed down a little, Hobbit plans went bye-bye, Saul Zaentz would have none of The Hobbit without Jackson, Greg Wright also spoke up for Jackson, as did James Cameron, but Sam Raimi was a possible alternate, then Jackson said the possibility of him working on The Hobbit was remote in May, but to make things interesting, New Line starts having problems and Shaye sings a different tune.

What could there possibly be to say after all of that? According to EW, the war has come down to a simmer, and sources say that things are looking good for the Hobbit project -- of course this is second-hand, as the main players are now tight-lipped. There's nothing like appeal of money to calm tensions! But I imagine that if this goes through, Jackson will be a stickler about his contract, and there's going to be a lot of eyes watching New Line's accounting. God, can you imagine what they can rake in if they make films comparable to the Rings? Sweet, merciful crap!

Since this is all just gossip, take it as such for now.

It appears Sir Ian McKellan will most definitely return as Gandalf. He is quoted in The Guardian as saying that he would be "very pleased" to return to the iconic role, which he played in the three Lord of the Rings movies. He also stated that he will do it regardless of whether or not Peter Jackson is brought back to direct the "prequel".

In fact, McKellan claims he has received Jackson's blessing to do the film without him. And so the actor said that if he's physically capable of playing the character, he will certainly do so. Of course, he hasn't officially been asked to return, let alone cast, in The Hobbit. But surely he will be offered the part... well, we hope anyway.

The project is still not on point, actors and directors on not entirely decided- so we wait.

Tidbit on Raimi from MTV about the Hobbit.

Raimi, of course, really wants to do it, but he's deferring to Jackson. "Well, it really is Peter Jackson's project, and I wouldn't make any conditions." That being said, if Jackson won't, Raimi hopes he will be the alternate choice: "If [Jackson] didn't want to direct it, and he was producing it, then I would love to be considered for the project." Seeing that Jackson might be in talks for the film, I'm thinking the possibility of hobbits and Raimis is gone. THANK GOD.

For the love of God, doesn't anyone at the studio read the internets? The entire fucking world wants Peter Jackson to do this if anyone does... and would all go to see it. Dang.

A press release has been issued with regards to the long-anticipated big-screen adaptation of The Hobbit, and it looks like Peter Jackson will indeed be involved as an executive producer on both The Hobbit and a sequel. Both films will be shot simultaneously, with pre-production beginning as soon as possible. Right now the tentative release for The Hobbit is 2010, with the sequel coming in 2011. Here's a bit of the press release:

Los Angeles, CA (Tuesday, December 18, 2007) Academy Award-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson; Harry Sloan, Chairman and CEO, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM); Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne, Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs of New Line Cinema have jointly announced today that they have entered into the following series of agreements:

* MGM and New Line will co-finance and co-distribute two films, "The Hobbit" and a sequel to "The Hobbit." New Line will distribute in North America and MGM will distribute internationally.

* Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh will serve as Executive Producers of two films based on "The Hobbit." New Line will manage the production of the films, which will be shot simultaneously.

* Peter Jackson and New Line have settled all litigation relating to the "Lord of the Rings" (LOTR) Trilogy.

Said Peter Jackson, "I'm very pleased that we've been able to put our differences behind us, so that we may begin a new chapter with our old friends at New Line. 'The Lord of the Rings' is a legacy we proudly share with Bob and Michael, and together, we share that legacy with millions of loyal fans all over the world. We are delighted to continue our journey through Middle Earth. I also want to thank Harry Sloan and our new friends at MGM for helping us find the common ground necessary to continue that journey."
 
OK- so that's cool to hear. 2 Movies on the one book is a bit of surprise- milking it to the end or a sensible choice? We will see. Either way, I'm looking forward to it- even though my animated Hobbit has always been the bomb.

ROCK!!

So we know Peter Jackson will indeed be returning to The Lord of the Rings universe as a producer on two more films, one of which is based on The Hobbit. Until now, we all assumed The Hobbit would be broken into two parts over two films and that would be it.

But wait! Maybe not. MTV spoke with Frodo himself, Elijah Wood, who shared a few tidbits with regards to what exactly Peter Jackson has planned for this second Hobbit film. He says, "I haven't spoken to him directly about it [but] I've e-mailed him, and as far as I know, the two films that they're doing, one will be 'The Hobbit' and another will take place between the 60 years that happened between 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings.' If I'm asked to go back and revisit that character and it makes sense, I would love to. I would absolutely love to."

I don't know about this rumor... I don't see why he has to go doing original material.

Earlier this month, director Guillermo del Toro talked about his open mind towards tackling The Hobbit, and how he was also interested in helming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Now The Hollywood Reporter has posted that del Toro, whose name has been on the Hobbit shortlist for a while, is in official talks to direct the two J.R.R. Tolkien installments. The Pan's Labyrinth director will most likely come away with the two gigs in his pocket, and really, is there anyone better (Jackson aside)?

If he signs on the dotted line, the push will then be to get a script together -- something that has to wait until the strike is resolved (or an interim agreement is made). Then, both del Toro and Peter Jackson will oversee the writing, and try to get things ready for the tentative starting date in 2009 -- with a hefty $150 million price tag attached to each film. The first would hopefully bow in 2010, with the second in 2011.

Hollywood deals being what they are, this story could be out of date as soon as it's posted, but apparently the latest word on Guillermo del Toro directing The Hobbit is still: "Not a sure thing." That's from the director's mouth to the ears of Total Film, which quotes del Toro as saying "the negotiations have not ended and The Hobbit is not a sure thing."

As Monika Bartyzel posted last week, The Hollywood Reporter published an article stating that del Toro was involved in official talks to direct two films based on the source material by J.R.R. Tolkien. If the deal was signed, del Toro and Peter Jackson would oversee the writing of the scripts and work on pre-production, with filming slated to begin in early 2009 on the first installment for release in 2010.

A couple of days later, the Internet went wild with the rumor that the deal had been closed. That was based on a statement reportedly made at the French premiere of the del Toro-produced The Orphanage. As a video posted on YouTube makes apparent, however, del Toro didn't confirm anything: someone in the audience asked in French, the question was translated into Spanish, and del Toro just smiled.

By now it has become so customary to see the words "New Line" and "Lord of the Rings" and "lawsuit" together.. There's a chance those movies are in jeopardy again, thanks to the folks running the estate of author J.R.R. Tolkien. According to the Associated Press, this latest suit was filed Monday by The Tolkien Trust, a British charity that manages Tolkien's estate, and HarperCollins, the publishing company that originally put out the Lord of the Rings books.

The main claim is that New Line has failed to pay The Tolkien Trust and other plaintiffs a promised 7.5% of the Lord of the Rings trilogy's gross receipts. The amount asked for in the case, however, is only $150 million, which seems to me to be a mere 2.5% of the reported $6 billion the films have earned worldwide.

The plaintiffs also seek unspecified punitive charges and the right to terminate New Line's rights to make those Hobbit movies being executive produced by LOTR director Peter Jackson. An attorney for the Tolkien estate mentioned that The Tolkien Trust does not "file lawsuits lightly" and has tried its hardest to settle the matter out of court. So, it looks like this will be a serious, long-going battle. And just when we thought everyone involved in these films was happy and ready to move on. We'll have to wait and see if we get those "prequels", at the helm of Guillermo Del Toro or anyone else, in 2010 and 2011 after all.

This story and a special Hobbit write up is currently featured on the main page blog.
Come on back here for some talk-back after checking it out.

Sir Ian McKellen has been pretty vocal about wanting to reprise his role as Gandalf the Grey in a future adaptation of The Hobbit. And that enthusiasm hasn't diminished. Over on his official website, where he graciously answers fan questions on everything from Gandalf to Shakespeare, he reaffirmed that he would happily return to Middle Earth.

Quote:

Q: So has it come to pass, good Sir McKellen? Shall the dreaming masses with their musty books and their blackened pipes at long last hear those immortal words issue from under that famous nose? "Yes, yes, my dear sir --and I know your name, Mr. Bilbo Baggins. And you do know my name, though you don't remember that I belong to it. I am Gandalf, and Gandalf means me! To think I should have lived to be good-morninged by Belladonna Took's son, as if I was selling buttons at the door!" Looking about, I find I share the same hopes as millions of others, so I ask, a single query in a chorus ... Will you again be our Gandalf in The Hobbit now that the deal is settled?

A: Yes I will, if Peter Jackson and I have anything to do with it, he being the producer and me being, on the whole, a very lucky actor. I've just read your quote out loud -- fabulous speech

Jody wrote:

I pray they make this movie.  What a great flick it would be.  I loved the Hobbit long before I love the Trilogy and it is just as good IMO.

I've been told countless times by my German teacher to read the books and I never actually did. I started reading the Hobbit and it was good but never got past the first few pages for some reason. I need to start reading again.

Indeed. This book will always be a favorite for me -- you should take the time to read it through at least once.

A scant week after Sir Ian McKellan confirmed he would (if asked) return as Gandalf, comes another good sign for The Hobbit.

Composer Howard Shore recently attended a live performance of the Lord of the Rings score in Switzerland. When asked whether he would be returning for The Hobbit, Shore confirmed that he is involved. Not only that, but he's been working on ideas since finishing the score for The Two Towers.

This comes by way of an e-mail to Ain't It Cool News, and hopefully, we'll have big official statements soon; at least some talk of casting.

Entertainment Weekly sat down with Del Toro and managed to get a few quotes from him on his involvement with The Hobbit. It sounds like nothing is definite, not even his involvement as director.

On where production stands now, the hopeful director is only slightly informed.

Quote:

"There have been a lot of discussions of cast and crew, agreements on the direction the movies would go, and if and when I come on board. But other than that, frankly it's all immaterial until everything is signed and put on paper."

As expected, the death of New Line Cinema put a kink in the works, but not as much as anyone would think.

Quote:

"I think it played a role for a few days; being dramatic, I would say a couple of weeks. But the fact is [the movie is] a huge endeavor. It's about a half-a-decade of commitment. It's two movies back-to-back that are massive. So a lot has to be sorted out. All I can say is, creatively we are all in sync and eager to commit and move forward."

Del Toro hopes that things are resolved by the summer, and promises that all will be made public as soon as it is. He denies that any delay is due to negotiations over his involvement with the script.

Quote:

"Oh, no no no. That is pretty much sorted out. I will be involved, and so will the original team [Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens] in some capacity. There's no discussion about that. It's more the planning of it, the calendar, but nothing as major as that. I cannot comment on specifics, but yes."