Yeah, we’ve been saying it all along but it bears repeating, if only to underscore just how tenuous the potential production on “The Hobbit” really is.
While rumors have swirled and fans cheered when it was reported last week that Peter Jackson was in negotiations to direct “The Hobbit,” as we and other sites logically speculated, MGM’s near-bankruptcy is a major wrench in the plans that needs to be solved before production can move ahead. Indeed, as Peter Jackson cagily revealed earlier in the week, following the rumors that he was considering the director’s chair, “Nothing has really changed — I’ve always said that me directing was one option, and so that’s not really news. The studio are working out what that deal would look like, because how else do they know if it’s a viable option? But it’s honestly one of several different options — many irons are in the fire right now.”
So what is that deal? Deadline reports that one of the big sticking points surrounding “The Hobbit” is that when everything is tallied up, 30% of the gross profits will go to various participants. Basically, a film of this scale needs lots of investors, and while the film will undoubtedly make a shitpile of money, it will be parceled out everyone who worked or produced the project in a major way. Basically, the film is not guaranteed to be the cash cow for MGM everyone thinks it will be. The decision creditors face is whether or not to bankroll the two films (or find outside money to do so) and it must be done in the coming weeks, before larger plans to change ownership get underway. In addition to potentially losing Jackson, who needs a deal to come together quickly, any further delays will bump the film from making its planned December 2012 release date.
It’s a complex, messy situation that needs fast action — but unfortunately, MGM’s financial problems aren’t the kind that are easily resolved. It will be a very interesting next few weeks as the future of “The Hobbit” is sorted out.
