Peter Jackson in final talks to helm ‘Hobbit’ films

[HMG] – After years of delays and endless denials it’s being reported that Oscar winning ‘Lord of the Rings’ director, Peter Jackson has agreed to take the place of Guillermo del Toro and direct the upcoming films of The Hobbit.

As we recently told you, Guillermo had left the project, unable to endure the apparent six-year commitment. And while 48-year old Jackson initially denied he had plans to step in as director, those very designs have now come to pass.

Deadline says Peter’s manager, Ken Kamins is now negotiating Peter’s deal with MGM, who own the rights to the movie, plus Warners, and their subsidiary ‘New Line’ who are bringing most of the cash and will arrange distribution.

And Peter doesn’t work cheap: His flawless guidance of the ‘Rings’  trilogy is believed to have earned the 48-year old auteur around $125-million — and counting.

But despite the denials, clues that Peter would take over The Hobbit were there for those trained to look — He, his wife of 13-years, Fran Walsh and their long-time collaborator, Phillipa Boyens wrote the scripts with Guillermo – But just those three will fly to London on July 4th, then L.A a week later to meet the actors they might want in the films.

If another director was even being considered, they would need to be on that trip. Thus, Peter’s clearly in charge.

The long-awaited big-screen incarnation of Bilbo Baggins and his journey to Lonely Mountain is due to open in December  2012, followed by that rarest of Hollywood things – a justified sequel – in the same month of the following year…