Ian McKellen to return for The Hobbit

Sir Ian McKellen has, via his personal blog, delighted Tolkien fans worldwide by announcing his interest in reprising his role as Gandalf for the Lord of the Rings prequel The Hobbit.

“Yes, I will [do them],”McKellen intimates. “If Peter Jackson and I have anything to do with it, he being the producer and me being, on the whole, a very lucky actor.”

Guillermo del Toro is still in negotiations to take on directing duties for the Tolkien adaptation which will expand the novel into two movies. No start date for production has yet been set.