The word on the street is that Peter Jackson may end up directing the Hobbit. I have to admit I am ambivalent. I think Mr. Jackson’s achievements with the Lord of the Rings cannot be praised highly enough, though I have stated elsewhere my concerns with the actual adaptation. Given that, I wonder if perhaps Mr. Jackson might have more value as a producer than as a director.
This is the place where George Lucas should have remained. After Star Wars (the original, the one we now know as A New Hope), Mr. Lucas passed on both screenwriting and directing reins to others. He remained the idea man and the producer—the guy who got things done. He did the same for Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Oh, if he had only stayed right there.
I think Lucas’ greatest strengths are as a producer and as an idea man. If someone out there wants to argue the dude has chops with directing, I’ll listen, but I’m sorry I won’t be able to totally hide my amusement or stifle my sniggering.
Jackson might want to do the same thing. King Kong gave me ample justification for this opinion. In all honesty, there was a lot about LotR that hinted at the same.
If Peter Jackson does direct the Hobbit, I have a feeling he’ll do a far superior job to what George Lucas achieved as a director with “the Prequels,†but I believe there are other directors out there who might bring more to the table.
It’s not a done deal, so maybe something will change, but I have the feeling that Jackson will have an easier time finding funding and support if he takes on the mantle himself. It is, after all, a numbers game in Hollywood, and the only numbers that matter have dollar signs attached.