'The Hobbit': Third film in the series gets a new title
'The Hobbit' director Peter Jackson recently announced that the planned title for the third and final film in the trilogy has been changed.
'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' stars Martin Freeman (l.) and John Callen (r.).
Mark Pokorny/Warner Bros. Pictures/AP
The third installment in the planned 鈥淗obbit鈥� film trilogy has received a new title.
Originally titled 鈥淭he Hobbit: There and Back Again,鈥� the third movie will now be known as 鈥淭he Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,鈥� according to 鈥淗obbit鈥� director Peter Jackson.
Jackson, who also directed the film adaptations of author J.R.R. Tolkien鈥檚 鈥淭he Lord of the Rings鈥� trilogy, explained in a post that 鈥淭here鈥� fit better as a title when the series was planned as two films, not three.
鈥溾�橳here and Back Again鈥� felt like the right name for the second of a two film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo鈥檚 arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淏ut with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced 鈥� after all, Bilbo has already arrived 鈥榯here鈥� in the 鈥楧esolation of Smaug.鈥欌��
鈥淎rmies鈥� is scheduled to be released this December.
The second part of Jackson鈥檚 trilogy, 鈥淭he Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,鈥� was released this past December and Monitor film critic Peter Rainer gave it a B+ grade, writing that 鈥渢here鈥檚 much more eye-catching mayhem here than in the last [film]鈥�. Bilbo Baggins [Martin Freeman] gets to face off against one of the great movie dragons of all time and there鈥檚 a giant spider attack sequence that represents Jackson at his gross-out best鈥�. Most middle movies in a trilogy simply mark time. Not this one.鈥�