Written by new-contact on Sep 21, 2011. Posted in On Location

Peter Jackson’s Hobbit films likely to shoot on location in Queenstown

It’s perhaps not a massive surprise, but the scenic Queenstown in the heart of New Zealand’s South Island is likely to host scenes for Peter Jackson’s Hobbit films in the next few weeks. Queenstown is one of the most famous regions of the country, with its great scenery and easy access.

Jackson filmed scenes in Queenstown ten years ago for Lord of the Rings and it seems the region is likely to benefit from the Hobbit films as well. Tolkien’s precursor to Lord of the Rings is being filmed as two back-to-back features with a combined production budget of around USD500 million.

If the movie people come and respect the property and respect its values, and they do, then we can't see any incompatibility [with our aims].

Tony Everitt, Destination Queenstown

Tony Everitt is Chief Executive of Destination Queenstown and spoke to the Otago Daily Times: “If the movie people come and respect the property and respect its values, and they do, then we can't see any incompatibility [with our aims]. If there is going to be some filming in this part of the world that would be fantastic.”

Indications are that the production team will be bringing in a crew of over 200 for a four-day shoot. Jackson and his production team went back into pre-production and location scouting over the New Zealand winter after the fantasy epic’s first filming segment wrapped a few months ago.