First Image of Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield in THE HOBBIT!
Our first look at the mighty but stubborn warrior Thorin Oakenshield and let's hope he gets his moment to chop down some Orcs and Goblins!
A lot of eyebrows were raised when Robin Hood (the God-awful BBC series version where he played The Guy of Gisbourne) actor Richard Armitage was cast by Peter Jackson in the major role of Thorin Oakenshield in the two-part Middle-Earth The Hobbit epic last October. Indeed, I remember our loyal reader Barn remarking - "We go from Brian Cox being touted as Thorin to some talentless hack from Robin Hood?" - and certainly in some fans eyes there was sense of bitter disappointment that Jackson didn't go for a seasoned actor or someone with a bit more clout. I'll admit I haven't seen much of Armitage myself and I don't really want to judge him on his work that I have which are his turn in Robin Hood (but the show almost required bad acting) and the finale of Dawn French's awful sitcom The Vicar of Dibley but I'll admit, my gut reaction was a negative one last year when I read his name attached to the part. As Jackson has been doing for almost a fortnight now, he has been revealing the first looks at those who will be accompying Bilbo on a journey to reclaim Lonely Mountain from Smaug the dragon and it's The One Ring who gets the exclusive on Armitage as Oakenshield. 
You know, I look at Armitage trying to do his best intense look and then I imagine the intensity Brian Cox might have given to it and then I just wonder if Barn was onto something. ; In The Hobbit - Thorin is a mighty but stubborn warrior and let's hope he gets his moment to chop down some Orcs and Goblins!