From IGN.com:

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Del Toro Signed for The Hobbit
Official announcement made at Orphanage premiere.
by IGN Staff


February 1, 2008 - It was reported earlier this week that Mexican filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro had been in negotiations to direct both The Hobbit and another film based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien for New Line Cinema and MGM. Del Toro has now been announced as having officially signed on to direct the two films.

According to the British newspaper The Guardian, the announcement was made at the French premiere of the del Toro-produced thriller The Orphanage. "Today is a big day because we are announcing what everyone wanted to hear, which is that he will be directing The Hobbit," the host reportedly told the audience as he introduced del Toro.

Oscar winner Peter Jackson, who directed the Lord of the Rings trilogy, will executive produce The Hobbit. The screenplay cannot be worked on, however, until after the writers' strike ends.


New Line and MGM have tentatively penciled in principal photography for the two films -- which will be shot back-to-back -- for 2009, with a budget of $150 million per film. The first is slated for release in 2010, with the second the following year.

The Hobbit, written by Tolkien in 1937, takes place many years before The Lord of the Rings and centers on young Bilbo Baggins, who, along with a group of dwarves and Gandalf the wizard, embark on a quest to steal the treasure of Smaug the dragon. The first movie will reportedly tell this story, while the second will show events immediately preceding the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring.