I was surprised to hear that Del Toro was attached to direct The Hobbit, but not surprised to hear that he left because the whole thing seems so beneath him. Everybody knows that The Hobbit/LOTR are somewhat racist films, and I think Del Toro realised that and that's the true reason he left the project.
My strength is greater than my weakness
Racist? Against who? Orcs?
Yeah, I'm with the above poster, what's the racist subtext? I suppose the characters are all white, but I'm not sure that classifies as racist.
shareHe left it cuz of the long delay.
Lose the Game!!!!!!!
It wasn't just the delay. He was being diplomatic, that much was very clear.
I actually knew somebody in college who was making props for The Hobbit via mail! He sent them from Oregon! He even got to see Mike Mignola original concept art for Smaug, because the props he was making were for the dragon's lair. Mignola's designs were totally and completely different from Jackson's. I also heard that he wanted to redesign/reconceive the Orcs, which in my mind validates the idea that del Toro wanted to make the series less racist.
Yes, the LOTR and Hobbit movies are awfully, awfully xenophobic. The amount of moral simplification that happened to these stories disgusts me. Tolkien rolls in his grave every time Jackson used a gory death scene (Goblin King, anyone?) just for laughs. It's absolutely abhorrent.
Del Toro's Hobbit movies would have been amazing. It's a true tragedy that studio politics forced him out of the director's chair. It wasn't just the delay, because him quitting made the sale of MGM happen faster. (The company was literally worth more money with Jackson signed to direct The Hobbit than del Toro. Jackson was a sure thing, del Toro was a risk. Think about that.)
Protozoid's post said everything I wanted ton say, but in a far more insightful and manner. The all white cast is fine, no problems there as it makes sense given the author and books and such.
The description and design of the Orcs was the main issue I always had with the Lord Of The Rings. It's just unapologetically offensive that I can't bring myself to ever watch those films again. Or even read those books. It's a shame because theres some very creative stuff in there and I can certainly see the appeal of them, but they aren't for me. I was very happy to hear Del Toro departed from the project. He's way too good for that.
My strength is greater than my weakness
So they're xenophobic against goblins?
+++by His wounds we are healed. - Isaiah 53:5+++
Yeah I don't get it either. Racist? That's an eye roll right there.
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