Hobbit Shoot to Stay in NZ

It's official. The production of the Hobbit movies will stay in New Zealand.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key made the announcement at a press conference on Wednesday. According to CNN, Key said that the government had agreed to

clarify the distinction between independent contractors and employees as it relates to the film production industry.... It is this clarification that will guarantee the movies are made in New Zealand.

Reports on TVNZ and Bloomberg.com also link the deal to an increase in the promised tax rebate for the studio.

The New Zealand Herald reported early this week that over 2,000 gathered Monday morning in Wellington to support Peter Jackson and the filming of the Hobbit movies in New Zealand.

Richard Taylor spoke at the rally, telling the crowd, "New Zealand is still the greatest destination in the world for film making."

Other rallies were held in Auckland, Christchurch, Hamilton, Queenstown and Matamata.

Organizers took advantage of the fact that Monday, October 25 is Labour Day in new Zealand. They want to demonstrate the country's enthusiasm to Warner Brothers bigwigs, who met with Peter Jackson and government officials this week.

In other related news, the proposed deal that will put MGM under the direction of Spyglass Entertainment heads Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum has been approved by MGM's creditors.

Click through to HJ's Hobbit News page for ongoing updates about Peter Jackson's new journey into Middle-earth...

Here's a summary of articles posted at Hollywood Jesus this weekend about Operation Narnia (click on the links for the full articles):