Martin Freeman to transfer to Wernham Hogg's Shire branch

Martin Freeman has signed on to play Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson's upcoming adaptation of The Hobbit. No word on whether or not his contract prohibits gay hobbit pillow fights, though.

It looks like there is finally some actual forward momentum on Peter Jackson's long-awaited adaptation of JRR Tolkien's beloved book, The Hobbit, and there's a good chance that we'll actually see the movie in the near future.

One of the most encouraging signs is that Martin Freeman has signed on to play the title character. Not for nothing, but Freeman is an inspired choice for the role, and should prove to be a fine successor for Sir Ian Holm, who previously inhabited the character in the Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

In addition to Freeman, a bevy of regular sized actors have signed on to play the Dwarves with the increasingly silly names. These include Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield, Graham McTavish as Dwalin, and Stephen Hunter as Bombur. See what I mean?

Jackson and New Line/Warner Bros want to shoot in New Zealand again, especially now that the threat of an actor's strike is no longer looming. It makes sense, as they still have sets from the previous production in place, and that would save them a bit of time and money.

At any rate, it's exciting that this is actually happening, and we can only hope that it lives up to the greatness of the first three films in the series. Even if it is technically a prequel, and we all know how badly those can turn out.