Ah, "The Hobbit." At long last, movie-goers will once again have a chance to be whisked away to the real-life Middle-earth that Peter Jackson created for his "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Only this time that vision will be guided by director Guillermo del Toro. News has been relatively light on the project, which is understandable considering that it's still a few years off.

We fans will still take any update we can get, right? The latest comes from no less a personage than Sir Ian McKellen, aka Gandalf the Grey, speaking in an interview with Empire. The actor knows the score with "The Hobbit," and he had an update on where the powers-that-be are in the process of pulling the adaptation together. Read more...

Contributed by Silas Lesnick

James Bond actor Daniel Craig has officially signed on as the pirate Red Rackham in the newly titled "The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn," joining the previously-announced Jamie Bell as the boy reporter Tintin, Andy Serkis as Captain Haddock and Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as Thomson and Thompson. But wait, there's more: In addition to Steven Moffat (of "Doctor Who" fame), Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish have come aboard as writers.

Rope of Silicon has the news that should please current "Tintin" fans and, hopefully, excite even those cynical about the project. Read more...