Peter Jackson returns to Middle-earth in his two part prequel The Hobbit. This week New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures, and MGM announced the titles and release dates for the films. Part one is The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and will be released on December 14, 2012; part two is The Hobbit: There and Back Again, and will be released the following year on December 13, 2013. Here’s our first official synopsis:

Both films are set in Middle-earth 60 years before Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings,” which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar-winning “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”  The adventure of “The Hobbit” follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug.

Click after the break to find the press release which includes a list of the actors on board for the project of epic proportions.

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