Ian McKellen To Reprise Role Of Gandalf

LONDON — Ian McKellen will again take up the robes of Gandalf the Wizard in the cinematic adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy classic "The Hobbit," a British film magazine reported Wednesday.

But McKellen's publicist warned that final arrangements were yet to be made.

"Of course he wants to do it, but nothing's been agreed or signed," Clair Dobbs said.

Empire magazine's Web site quoted McKellen as saying that director Guillermo del Toro told him he would again be playing the white-haired wizard.

"He confirmed that I would be reprising the role," the magazine quoted McKellen as saying. "Obviously, it's not a part that you turn down, I loved playing Gandalf."

McKellen's sonorous interpretation of Gandalf in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy delighted fans and critics, earning him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor.

The 68-year-old British actor previously told The Associated Press that he would hate to see anyone else play the role.

The "Lord of the Rings" movies, based on the Tolkien book series of the same name, were extremely lucrative, grossing some $2.8 billion at theaters worldwide.

"The Hobbit" is being produced by Peter Jackson, the director of the "Rings" movies, and is likely to be filmed in his home country of New Zealand next year.

___

On the Net:

Ian McKellen:

http://www.mckellen.com/

Empire:

http://www.empireonline.com/

Comments

[MetalCanuck]

Yeah!!:)

[RoseMerry]

SIGN THE MAN!
Thou shalt not have any Gandalfs before Ian!

This is starting to be interesting!

[castlerider]

So why's the guy in his pajamas?

I hope the music is just a little more ROCKIN' this time; or at least a little meaner.
LOTR's music was cool, but sometimes got a little dorky with the same old drone.

[Grazziella]

Awesome, I can't wait!

[WRPrintz]

Excellent. Now, they need to get Hugo Weaving back as Elrond for a cameo, and they will be set.

[julieeiluj]

They should cast Karl Rove as an orc, he would not need makeup.

[smilodon1]

Why do you want to insult orcs? They, at least, have one good quality: they usually eat something AFTER they kill it.

[WRPrintz]

I see him more as a Nazgul.

[julieeiluj]

Yippeeeeeeeee!

[TakLoufer]

What I wanna know is -- why is this great gay actor playing asexual wizards when he should be reviving great gay playwrights like Orton, Williams, and Albee on screen? He's certainly earned enough hard cash to pay for such ventures. It's high time that a new production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf be filmed, with McKellen (or more appropriately, Kevin Spacey) as George, Streep as Martha, Ewan McGregor as Nick, and Amy Ryan as Honey.

[castlerider]

Oooohhhhh... so thats why he's in his pajamas.

[Trueheart]

Who else? The guy brought power to the role that few actors could deliver. Maybe Sean Connery, but I can't see him pulling off the tender side of Gandalf as well as McKellen did.

[Stillhere29]

Nice. Regardless of del Toro's previous statements about the LOTR books, and their particular take on the fantasy gere, I think he's a unique, and gifted director, and so far, he's only made smart moves in regards to The Hobbit, and it's sequel. Ian McKellen reprising Gandalf is just another positive sign that this series is in good hands.