The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Both ‘The Colbert Report’ and ‘The Hobbit’ franchises will come to an end in the next few weeks, and given Stephen Colbert’s unabashed love for all things Tolkien, we’ve seen a great deal of cross-promotion. The latest might be the most impressive yet however, as Colbert interviews none other than the dragon Smaug himself, live on the set!

Having gone on an unexpected journey and endured the desolation of Smaug, Peter Jackson’s bloated adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s ‘The Hobbit’ finally comes to ‘The Battle of the Five Armies,’ which is less of a climax to this trilogy than a distended epilogue. After spending two movies and 330 minutes building up the dragon Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) as the ultimate antagonist, he’s eliminated from the story completely in the first ten minutes. He’s literally gone before the title appears onscreen.

This past weekend's latest 'SNL' with three-time host James Franco didn't quite bring anything new to the table, but will the series have better luck with fresh blood from Martin Freeman? The first promos for the 'Sherlock' star's guest turn have arrived, and don't worry, there's plenty of 'Hobbit' references and British-isms for everyone.

Before interviewing Lee Pace—who returns to Middle-earth as the Elvenking, Thranduil, in the upcoming ‘The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies’—I conducted a completely scientific poll (it was not scientific at all, I randomly asked my friends), asking “Where do you think Lee Pace is from?” Of the seven people I asked, only one knew that Pace was born in the United States. (This particular person guessed Nebraska, the correct answer is Oklahoma and/or Texas.) What’s most remarkable about this is just how shocked people look when they find out that Pace went to high school in Houston. (Honestly, this all seems like a compliment. An “actor from England” seems to have more prestige than “an actor from Houston.”)

Yes, it’s easy to decry the permeation of film marketing and our obsession with trailers and posters and previews, but let’s just be honest with ourselves here: The ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ trailer is going to an event that rivals the release of most movies. Think back to the good ‘ol days of 1998 (”A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...”) and remember how fans would buy tickets to ‘A Bug’s Life’ and ‘The Siege’ just to watch the teaser trailer for ‘Star Wars: Episode I.’ If you’re one of those people and want to replicate that experience, you’d better pre-order your ticket for ‘The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies’ pretty soon.

It's being touted as the “definitive chapter” in the ‘Hobbit’ trilogy, and it promises to be the most epic conclusion, culminating in a huge, 45-minute battle sequence. But it's also been quite a journey, with three ‘Lord of the Rings’ films and now ending with the third ‘Hobbit’ film. For this farewell, ‘The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies’ will get an appropriately emotional goodbye with an end credits song performed by Billy Boyd, who played Pippin in all three ‘Lord of the Rings’ films. And now you can listen to the end credits song in full before the film hits theaters.

The final 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies' trailer has arrived and, well, it looks like another 'Hobbit' movie. If your faith in director Peter Jackson's vision of Middle-Earth remains unshaken, prepare to get excited. If the previous two films have muted your excitement for the series, prepare to see...more of the same.

Warner Bros. continues to tout 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies' as the defining chapter of the middle earth saga, and the most epic installment yet. How epic? Well, it apparently culminates with a 45-minute battle sequence featuring dwarves and orcs and elves and all their various weapons and such. It's a big ol' middle earth war party, and Peter Jackson has the diagram to prove it.

Back in 2012, some of the cast members from the 'Hobbit' films appeared in an in-flight safety video for Air New Zealand titled "An Unexpected Safety Briefing," and to coincide with the upcoming sequel 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,' they've made a different kind of sequel: "The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made." It is very epic indeed.

Luke Evans looks good in a cape. And I get the impression that Luke Evans knows that he looks good in a cape, though, the trick is, as he says, a good wind machine. This is now life for Evans, an admittedly private actor who is starring in what seems to be just about everything these days. I asked Evans if he can walk down the street without being mobbed, to which he responded that, outside of a stray fan every few blocks or so, he can still walk around in general obscurity. Soon after this interview, I left Evans’ hotel and was greeted by an almost block-wide spread depicting Evans as Dracula ... you know, those mobs might be coming sooner rather than later.