There's no question that Bilbo Baggins provides the heart and backbone of "The Hobbit," but the hairy-footed Hobbit is more than willing to share the screen with his nephew as well.
News broke yesterday that Warner Bros. is handling the worldwide theatrical and video distribution for "The Hobbit," but that's not all we're hearing from The Shire. Buried in Deadline's coverage of the announcement is a brief tease that Elijah Wood might reprise his "Lord of the Rings" role of Frodo Baggins for Peter Jackson's prequel.
Deadline's report received further confirmation from The One Ring, who state that Wood will return to Middle-Earth as Frodo.
Word of Wood's involvement comes despite the fact that "The Hobbit" takes place several years before "Lord of the Rings" and, really, even Frodo's birth. But it appears there's a natural way for Frodo to fit into proceedings. In the "Lord of the Rings" series, Jackson was careful to include the fictional "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again" novel that Bilbo wrote to chronicle his adventures in "The Hobbit." By the end of "Return of the King," Frodo has passed the book off to Samwise Gamgee.
The One Ring reports: "The fictional book, and either the telling from it or the reading of it, will establish Frodo in the films experiencing Bilbo's story. Viewers learn the tale of 'The Hobbit' with a familiar Frodo getting the tale as well."
According to the report, Frodo will be featured in the opening sequences of both installments of the two-part sequel. There's still a possibility that the previously rumored Orlando Bloom and other "Lord of the Rings" actors like Sean Astin could reprise their roles in similar ways, but there's currently no confirmation of their involvement. And, frighteningly enough, there's still nothing official on Ian McKellan or Andy Serkis...
Tell us what you think of the news in the comments section and on Twitter!
** FOLLOW MTV MOVIES BLOG ON TWITTER! **