Del Toro: "We have agreed on our choice for Bilbo"
And Matt lets you know who he thinks should play him...
As part of an exclusive interview in the next issue of the Empire magazine which hits stands this Friday, Guillermo del Toro has sensationally revealed that himself and Peter Jackson have mutually agreed on their choice for who should step into the shoes of Ian Holm and lead the film as Bilbo Baggins.
The only name I remember being rumored was the extremely smart choice of Martin Freeman (The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy) who you may remember auditioned for the villain role in Jackson's upcoming drama The Lovely Bones but ultimately lost out to Stanley Tucci. Since that day, I have championed Freeman who may seriously be the only actor that has spoken to Jackson about the role. Could it be him? Del Toro says...I can tell you that its down to a few names that we all agree upon. And that our first choicecompletely, magically, we said the same name. All of us! "We said this is the guy we would talk to, but until the pages are there you have to let the character tell you who he wants to be played by. You can expect at least a year before we announce any casting.Freeman is beyond perfect. He looks like a Hobbit, he looks like Ian Holm, he has that friendly but vulnerable face that Bilbo should carry, he is enthusiastic, charismatic and he has a timeless quality about him that makes him ripe for Middle-Earth. Freeman is my number one choice, hands down. Thoughts?
