Sir Ian McKellen cast in del Toro’s “The Hobbit”

As if anyone else could have played the part.

(image from Yahoo!)

clipped from movies.yahoo.com Ian McKellen will again take up the robes of Gandalf the Wizard in the cinematic adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy classic “The Hobbit” a British film magazine reported Wednesday. But McKellen’s publicist warned that final arrangements were yet to be made. McKellen’s sonorous interpretation of Gandalf in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy delighted fans and critics, earning him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor. The 68-year-old British actor previously told The Associated Press that he would hate to see anyone else play the role. “The Hobbit” is being produced by Peter Jackson, the director of the “Rings” movies, and is likely to be filmed in his home country of New Zealand next year.