Lord of the Rings

'The Hobbit' Gains An Unexpected Cast Member

Nov 10th 2009 1:04PM By: Peter Hall

0 Comments

Details on the Guillermo del Toro directed, Peter Jackson produced two-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit have been slow coming so far. Fans of Lord of the Rings are dying to know who, if any, of the trilogy's original cast will be returning in the new films; as well as who exactly will be filling the biggest roles from the book. Well now del Toro has stepped up to the plate and announced, via a translation of an interview with the director that aired on German TV, a new cast member for the film: himself.

Yep, the Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth director has set aside a tiny little cameo in the form of a small monster found in Middle Earth: "I had a hand on the design of the creature and I will personally sculpt the appliances that will be applied on my face and hands. I used to sculpt the creatures for NECROPIA (my FX company) and I miss it a bit. I will have a line or two and die quickly."

That's about the extent of the detail he gives, which has me wondering whether it'll be a noticeable cameo (as Peter Jackson's was in Fellowship of the Ring) or whether he'll be a background goblin that blends in with the horde. Whatever the case, I find it very, very cool that he'll be creating the make-up effects for the apperance himself. Should be an interesting Easter Egg to keep your eye out for when The Hobbit releases in a few years.

If you happen to speak German, feel free to watch the entire interview below, which deals mainly with del Toro's vampire project, The Strain.

Filed under: News/Reactions

 EMAIL | SHARE

The Top Ten Princesses of Sci-Fi and Fantasy

Jul 8th 2009 9:02AM By: Sci-Fi Squad Staff

25 Comments



By: Elisabeth Rappe

Move over, Disney! When it comes to princesses, the sci-fi / fantasy genre has you completely outnumbered, outgunned, and outdressed.

Actually, I find the genre's obsession with princesses rather strange. Not on the fantasy end, mind you, as that genre draws heavily on European fairy tales and dynastic history, and will always find room for royal courts. But you'd think those galaxies far, far away would steer clear of European titles and class systems, and invent new systems of government. But let's face it, few labels evoke such a specific and exotic image as that of "princess," and slapping it onto your heroine does half your screenwriting for you. All you have to decide is if she carries a weapon or prefers a tiara, or if she's comfortable enough to coolly wield both in the name of duty. Luckily, the sci-fi / fantasy genre is rife with examples of all three. So drop a curtsy, and check out the list of my favorite genre princesses. And bow to Erik Davis for hatching the idea while you're at it.

1. Princess Leia Organa (Star Wars)

Princess Leia may not have been science fiction's first princess, but she's the one they all have to measure up to. Every girl since 1977 has thrilled to the fact that the head of the Rebel Alliance was a woman, and that no one (not even the cocky Han Solo, who needed her more than she needed him) raised an eyebrow at the fact. As if being fearless, diplomatic, intelligent, and one hell of a shot wasn't enough, she was also a Jedi like her father before her. No wonder Yoda seemed so calm when Luke flew off to his possible doom. Leia was the ace in the hole.

Filed under: Discussion Posts, Fan Lists, Fan Movies

 EMAIL | SHARE

New LOTR Film Hits Screens

Jun 1st 2009 9:40AM By: Sci-Fi Squad Staff

0 Comments

By: Peter Martin

Sure, all the early news and rumors about The Hobbit are fun to read, but we have to wait more than three years to see what Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro have cooked up. Three years is an eternity -- the world could end before The Hobbit (part one of two) arrives on the big screen in 2012! What's a Tolkien movie fan to do?

Hundreds of Hobbit-hungry volunteers in the UK came together to make The Hunt for Gollum, a 40-minute film based on the appendices of J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, according to The Guardian. Reportedly, the short "shows Aragorn's quest to find Gollum, the tortured creature who seeks the ring for himself. And faithful to Peter Jackson's trilogy, the lead bears an uncanny likeness to Viggo Mortensen." Chris Bouchard directed the film, composed the music, and served as executive producer. He told The Guardian: "It was really motivated by a love of the material. We couldn't wait for The Hobbit and wanted to try to add to the saga. We shot every weekend for a year and really tried to mimic the professional film process as much as possible on our shoestring budget."

Their budget was £3,000, which converts to about $4,500, which is rather incredible. The film debuted last night at the London International Festival of Science Fiction, a pretty cool event itself. I watched the first trailer for The Hunt for Gollum -- and it's pretty freakin' impressive. Head to the official site to watch one of the teasers or the trailers (or watch one trailer below) -- the entire movie is also supposed to be available online, though technical troubles kept me from connecting.



Filed under: Fan Made, News/Reactions, Fan Movies

 EMAIL | SHARE