…by hordes of very grumpy nerds doing very bad Gollum impressions, now that it’s been made official by the studio that Peter Jackson’s services will no longer be required to direct their planned adaption of “The Hobbit.”
“Last week, Mark Ordesky called Ken (Kamins, Jackson’s manager) and told him that New Line would no longer be requiring our services on `The Hobbit’ and the LOTR `prequel,'” the 45-year-old New Zealand director wrote on TheOneRing.org. “This was a courtesy call to let us know that the studio was now actively looking to hire another filmmaker for both projects.”
The announcement came amid an ongoing dispute between Wingnut Films – Jackson’s production company – and New Line Cinema over the amount Jackson was paid for “The Fellowship of the Ring,” including DVD payments…and while Jackson hasn’t said how much he believes he was underpaid, The New York Times last year quoted his lawyers as saying it was as much as $100 million. He is suing New Line Cinema over the shortfall.
Yes, I believe I would, too, come to think of it.
