GDT: No Hobbit Start Date

IGN Movies participated in a press conference yesterday with filmmaker Guillermo del Toro to talk about Splice, the new sci-fi/thriller that he exec produced. During the conference a few tidbits of information leaked out about the long-anticipated Hobbit film, which has been stymied by the financial woes of its debt-ridden studio, MGM.

"It's not greenlit. That's categorical. It's not greenlit," del Toro stressed. "There can't be any start date, really, until the MGM situation gets resolved because they do hold a considerable portion of the rights and it's impossible to make a unilateral decision by New Line or Warner. We really believe that dates will be known after the fact of MGM's fate. Whether they stay and get supported or they get bought or they transfer some of the rights, nobody knows. We've been caught in a very tangled negotiation."

Del Toro did say, however, they are already prepared to start working on the film once MGM's situation has been resolved. "We have designed all the creatures," he said. "We have designed the sets, the wardrobe. We have done animatics and planned very lengthy action sequences. We have scary sequences and funny sequences and we are very, very prepared for when it's finally triggered, but we don't know anything until MGM is solved."

Del Toro also dispelled the rumor going around about the film receiving the 3D treatment. "3D has been discussed literally once in the room," he said. "The budget and the schedule and everything we're handling -- the cost of the film and the number of days it would take to shoot -- is being handled right now without looking towards 3D. Is there a chance it would become 3D in the future? Maybe. But right now it's not being planned as such."