Where does news of this new character come from? I'm rather suspicious that anyone would know of it with the film still in this stage of pre-production. Do you have a source?

I'm just commenting on whats been put up on the website, theonering.net also put up the same story, so I feel like this is pretty legitimate.

The Wild Internet Rumours strike again . Damn, I thought Itaril sounded Hot .

[b:108eyi9z]GB[/b:108eyi9z]

Awesome Odo . Now we know where the "Romance in The Hobbit" is going to come from. Bilbo and Itaril, the first Hobbit/Elf coupling. Their children will bring new meaning to the term "Half-Elven" .

Indeed, they can Retcon Frodo's back-story. Frodo doesn't know Bilbo's secret, that Frodo is not his "nephew", but his illegitimate Half-Elven Love-child . That's why he's so fond of Elves and why Galadriel finds herself so attracted to him (remember all of her "significant glances" and "secret smiles" at Frodo).

You know, I think I'm starting to get the hang of this Fan Fiction stuff .

[b:uq648gkd]GB[/b:uq648gkd]

Spooky, guys!

My little snippet of prose and poetry comes from my planned fan-fiction novel, "BORED WITH THE HOBBIT" -
or: "In and Out Again - The Making of Frodo Baggins!"
or: "How to Woo an Elf-maiden if you're only three foot something."
or: "Hobbit Invents Step-Ladder."
(The choice of sub-title is quite fluid at the moment as you can see).

From "The Sindaran Dictionary for Dummies":- "IT-AR-IL'" := "It" = "Elf"; "ar" = "ooh", cognate of "wa-ooh"; and "il" = active particle of "nub'il'e". The particle "il" can also mean "not feeling well,especially in the morning" as seen in the dual-particle "[why am I] so-il"?

Odo

NB We're not taking this rumor seriously, are we? I want to. It's a lovely rumor. But surely we can't.

[quote="Odo Banks":2eyuew30]My little snippet of prose and poetry comes from my planned fan-fiction novel, "BORED WITH THE HOBBIT" -
or: "In and Out Again - The Making of Frodo Baggins!"[/quote:2eyuew30]

I'm sure you will rank up there with the Harvard Lampoon among the best Tolkien parodists.

Any Nubile Elf Maiden is a lovely rumour . I hope it's true actually (the appearance of Itaril in the film that is).

Odo, are you really writing a Fan Fic with my musings as your outline ? It doesn't have to be a full length novel. A short story would make me happy . I can't wait to hear how Bilbo gets it on with an Elf Maid and sires Frodo (so that's why he's the skinniest and best looking Hobbit ). I can't wait to read it.

I can see it now, Bilbo bringing a baby Frodo home from an extended adventure and passing him off to the Gaffer and the Sackvilles as his "nephew" from an obscure part of the Family. Perhaps it could be written as if Bilbo was relating the Truth of their relationship to Frodo and how it came to be, on the long voyage to Valinor.

I'll work on shifting this thread to the appropriate forum within the next day or so.

[b:34tvx9kd]GB[/b:34tvx9kd]

You might want to contact an administrator at theonering.net Tinuviel. Someone there might have contact information for the casting call.

[b:2qc7qhyo]GB[/b:2qc7qhyo]

Hey, Odo, I don't know what "movie" you're thinking of, but I was thinking of a Sweet and Heartbreaking Romantic Fan Fic involving Bilbo and Itaril (NOT an X-rated Parody). And seeing as you aren't writing it, I think I will . But I'd love it if I could borrow your poems, I really suck at poetry (they sound like really BAD rock lyrics).

[b:2r4z67et]GB[/b:2r4z67et]

Interestingly enough, there are a bunch of usually Fanatical Purist Tolkien Fans at Narniaweb, and they all seem to love the idea of Itaril . It may have something to do with the fact that many of them are Female (Power Grrrls Unite ). Most of the guys don't seem to mind too much either .

[b:18978bvs]GB[/b:18978bvs] (%)

Tinuviel - I hate to break this to you ... but the casting call thing [url=http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2010/01/04/34841-major-roles-being-cast-for-the-hobbit/:3gkq6jdl]wasn't official[/url:3gkq6jdl]. If you want to try to get a role of any kind you'll have to go to wherever the casting is happening and try to find the exact street address. I'm not sure where you live, but if you're in the U.S. like me it is - I think - in LA.

Yes I felt it wasnt official, but I've learned patience
And it's good to have a female lead in the Hobbit because it makes the movie more relateable to women. AND sadly, women are horrifically drawn to romance so if they DO end up having Itaril in the movie, they'll be more girls in the theaters!

[quote="Tinuviel":2szoljaj]And it's good to have a female lead in the Hobbit because it makes the movie more relateable to women.[/quote:2szoljaj]

Because we all know that Tolkien's books are sooooo unrelateable to women. In fact they're so unrelateable that women reads have helped make them some of the greatest best-sellers of all time!

Yes, but Films have to appeal to NON-readers too . In any case, it's Women readers (Purists no less ) who are supporting this rumour.

[b:17b08lk0]GB[/b:17b08lk0]

Well being a female reader/lover of LOTR, it would be nice to see a female character. We all love the story, but it makes it easier for WOMEN to relate to other WOMEN.
And besides, we need some responsible leading lady to keep all of those male kritters under control

Same here. I really thought that Arwen getting a bigger role in the movies was a good choice, from an adaptation point of view. The movies are never going to be exactly the same as the books, and Tolkien's one major problem was his lack of female characters in his books. They just didn't play a major role in this part of history (with the exception of one ’owyn), apparently, but because of that, the books do isolate away female readers to an extent.

Tolkien has been accused of being sexist, and sometimes even asexual, what with his lack of female characters. I don't agree with those notions, but I have heard them out there. I know how much he adored his wife, and the story of Beren and Luthien is a testament to that love. But he had a lack of romance in his novels, because it wasn't what he was concerned with at that time.

I think Itaril might be a good add for an adaptation, but only if she doesn't steal away the spotlight. She's supposed to be a lead, according to the unconfirmed information, and that means that she has a pretty major role. Hopefully her romance will enhance the themes of the Hobbit, rather than being, "oh and this romance happened on the side for you girls to go squeal over Legolas again, but seen from a action fangirl who has unrequited love for him."

I trust Guillermo Del Toro to make her flow seamlessly into the film. I don't quite trust Peter Jackson in that regard, but luckily Guillermo has a bit more of a rein over this than PJ does.

Amen to that Eldorion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just by watching the movies, I became completely engaged! In fact, I didn't even know that LOTR was a book until a year or so after TT But I knew so much already!!!!!!!!!
Since I was so young when I fell in love with LOTR, the movies were what pulled me in. Good movies really advertise for the books they're about

[quote:2hdzr6up][b:2hdzr6up]Marahandir:[/b:2hdzr6up]
I think GDT and PJ are justified in presenting a strong female character who was lacking in the original book. I love the book; don't get me wrong. I really want them to be faithful to it. It's just, difficult in that regard. I really like the idea of seeing the attack on Dol Guldur. I wouldn't mind a romance subplot. Itaril sounds interesting.
[/quote:2hdzr6up]

YAAAY!!!! Another practitioner of Zen style "Purism". The Purism of No Purism (or something like that ). I agree Marahandir. Why can't an adaptation be both faithful AND have novel elements. Yes, Eldorion is correct when he says Spirit is hard to define, but that doesn't mean that there ISN'T one. I am very happy for PJ's version of LotR as being faithful to the Spirit of LotR, if not always the Letter (though I think it does better in that regard than some might suggest). I think DT will be awesome too.

I really do hope that there are a few female Elves around too. Luthien was an awesome character. Tolkien had quite a number of such strong female characters that don't get a lot of coverage in his two most widely read works. As they are the most likely to be the only books of his to get the Big Screen treatment, why shouldn't some of the elements of Tolkien's larger world be folded into the screenplays?

By the way, your comparison of The Silmarillion to The Bible is quite apt. Though it's just as fair (if not more-so ) to compare it to the Gnostic Texts or any other Ancient Religious/Historical Manuscripts.

[b:2hdzr6up]GB[/b:2hdzr6up]

Hey, I've already had that argument . I'll let you and someone else duke it out for now . I just like the idea of Itaril .

Besides, the movies gave me the exact same tingly feeling I had when I read the books ,... not to mention the imagery and characters looking and behaving just as I imagined them ,... or the fact that the plot is largely intact (if you've seen Prince Caspian, or the Potter films, you know how much further films can stray from the original source material).

[b:2ybmfoey]GB[/b:2ybmfoey]

Well i really hate to be the Debbie Downer in all this, but I have to say that this should have been expected. The first round of movies came from a passion for the content, with a Writer/Director who loved and cared for the world of middle earth and the characters running around in it.

Then it made a gazillion bucks, and as usually is the case, lawsuits over the money popped up. The passion form the first movies distanced himself, they found a capable guy, who says he doesn't like hobbits, and get him to sign on. He then spends more time talking about Frankenstein' s memoirs than anything else.

The fact that they haven't given the green light to an obvious home run speaks volumes. So why haven't they, well as we know, the studio has NO MONEY!

PJ showed up at New Line and said, I want to do LOTR, here is the proof i can do it, here is the script, I am ready and passionate, gimme 300 million dollars. They said "we'll take it", and a trilogy of inspired films were made to the benefit of all, the fans, the casual audience, the studio, everyone.

This round is a different scenario. I have a billion dollars in this bag, its called the hobbit movie, any one wanna open it?

Slimy Hollywood studio big shot leans forward and says "Yeah, of course, get a director if the first guy doesn't want in, grab some artsy guy with a few awards, but since its not all figured out, we have an opportunity for me "improve" the content, make it more "Audience Neutral", you know what I mean"

"there needs to be a strong female character, the first 3 films made a billion, but we feel there was more there, we missed a lot of the audience by having it be all about men, so if ya want to make the movie, lets see if we can add some women to the story, get more audience involved, we can do that right?"

In the context of the hobbit, the only culture that had females as leaders were elves, and that is because they were more socially evolved than the other races. This, is just the way it was, the way Tolkien designed it.

The main problem they have from a market position is the Hobbit is a much lighter and simpler book, written before the established films, which are insanely epic movies. They cant make the movie the way it is supposed to be, the story of a quirky common person who gets in over his head, and realizes he is taller than he thought he was. They have to top the last one, even though it is lesser in scope and story

Enter the story of Gandalf, what did he do during the many absences he takes in the hobbit. Well if we were supposed to know that, Tolkien would have written it into that story. The movie HAS to be bigger in scope and story than the first three, even though the book is not.

Hollywood does not like this project. They hate that it is a story entirely of men, that there is no sex or romance in it, that not one of the leads can be cast with a 6'2" headliner to draw the ladies. If it were not for the fact that it is THE FRIGGIN HOBBIT, this film would never be made. But there is a pile of money hanging out there, so they more or less have to, but they see the charm and character of this world as obstacles that they have to overcome.

Adding characters, to appeal to audiences, maybe wont ruin the film, but it is to me a sign of concessions to the superficial "focus group" think of Hollywood. And it is not like there hasn't already been a non stop trail of issues that have monkeyed things up already.

New Line should have just paid the Tolkien estate, not ticked off PJ, gave him another 300m and said "GO DO IT AGAIN"

What we got was "Noooooo the director LOVES hobbits, he was drunk and goofing around wen he said that stuff, really he was", "NOooooooowe are definitely making the movie, really we are, I swear, all we need to do is get a script past the political correctness cops at the studio, actually get them to green light the picture, and have PJ yank the leash of the leash of the director every 3 days, get him to stop pimping every other project he has for the next 10 years, and remember he is being given a chance to make THE HOBBIT"

"Ohhh and since there are no strong women in the book, and that's clearly an oversight of Tolkien, were just gonna add one, and also a male human, talks are in the works and going well to have Zack Effron, of televisons "High School Musical" play a new character as well, Selloutidir, a man prince or something like that, once we agree on how to split of the rights to the 4 original pop tunes he will sing in the movie, but we are on the same page, very close!

But MGM will probably go BK before all this actually starts to shoot, sell the project off to settle debts, and it will all be a do-over anyways.

If i sound trollish, I apologize, but it stems from a pretty big feeling of sustained disappointment in how things seem to be going. The charm and success of the franchise was built on the original brilliance of the stories. Adding new characters to pander, further diminishes the potential that this will be a great film, and that I believe is what kept Tolkien from ever allowing a live action film adaptation. When he producer is out there all the time assuring us that things are going well, and moving along, the one thing we can be assured of is that they are not.

And it really bums me out.

I'm with you on this Mr Numenor.

Odo

NB You'll get used to our resident Tolkien Liberal-cum-Heathen Gandalfs Beard (he means well).

NBB If old Eru had given Men equality with Elves in the first place then He need not have destroyed Numenor (surely there were at least [i:1ksig8xj]some[/i:1ksig8xj] innocent children among them, God has always seemed capricious to me!)

[quote="Fingolfin":2kbnd3q9]"ITARIL - female, A woodland Elf, this character is one the Silvan Elves. The Silvan Elves are seen as more earthy and practical. Shorter than other elves, she is still quick and lithe and physically adept, being able to fight with both sword and bow. Showing promise as a fighter at a young age, ITARIL was chosen to train to become part of the Woodland King’s Guard. This is the only life she has ever expected to live, until she meets and secretly falls in love with a young ELF LORD. This role will require a wig and contact lenses to be worn. Some prosthetic make-up may also be required. LEAD. AGE: 17-27."

How does everyone feel about this? I for one am not too bothered by it as long as the love story is not brought to the forefront. They could really screw things up with this new character, or it could be a nice addition.[/quote:2kbnd3q9]



I think it's a bit much, and not of Tolkein's creation(therefor, I don't like it at all!)...I don't see how it would fit with the rest of the story or have anything to do with it...If it's meant for the Hobbit movie that is.


~On further thought, a love story in the telling of The Hobbit is dumb if not out right wrong...!

[quote="BOrgeron":1471opu5]Am I to understand that this ’Itaril’ is going to be in the Hobbit? It’s bad enough that they are going to put Galadriel in the film (a character who is not EVEN IN THE F’ING STORY), now they are making people up!!! This film SUCKS before it is even made!!! [/quote:1471opu5]


Woooooooooah there, tiger. I'm not quite sure about our "language" policy here, but I am glad you "censored" some of your words. However, no need to bash the film in a forum that supports it, and I, personally, would appreciate it if you didn't have such a temper about it, saying you do not know what age groups could be viewing your posts. Please be considerate.

Cheek!

[quote="BOrgeron":13gfyk34]Am I to understand that this ’Itaril’ is going to be in the Hobbit? It’s bad enough that they are going to put Galadriel in the film (a character who is not EVEN IN THE F’ING STORY), now they are making people up!!! This film SUCKS before it is even made!!! [/quote:13gfyk34]

I agree (at least partially) with your general sentiment, but would add my voice to those encouraging you to calm down. There are enough "angry purist" stereotypes out there already, so explaining [i:13gfyk34]why[/i:13gfyk34] a change may be upsetting is much more productive than just ranting.