If the title of this entry was to be really truthful, it’d have a GIANT question mark at the end.

See, IGN is holding a sweepstake for District 9, where the prize includes airfare/hotel to San Diego and a meet and greet with PJ (producer) and Neil Blomkamp (director) at SDCC 09. Yes, I recognize that I have a snowball’s chance, but it’s one of those situations where the prize is so cool that it’s worth the hail mary.

I noticed right away that men and women have different entry deadlines, which I thought mildly odd (why even have distinctions at all?). Peculiarities aside, as I went on my merry way completing this flash entry form, when I noticed something even more distressing- I could not check the ‘male’ box for gender. It states that the men’s deadline is July 22, so that couldn’t be it. And a quick try confirms that the women’s checkbox does work (but does not allow you to uncheck it once it’s checked, ugh, poor coding, anyone?)

A quick google search found something mighty revealing: the contest was originally open to males only. “You are not welcome here” indeed.

This totally explains the odd double entry periods and partially explains why the contest form is broken. The story has gotten some play around the blogosphere for its sexist restrictions and the powers that be have since rectified the situation, but as you can gather- rather haphazardly. Nice going!

While I’m glad the ladies now have a rightful chance at the goods, it still leaves me with a conundrum now that the roles are comically reversed: how the hell do I enter? Refreshing the page to clear the female checkbox, I wanted to see if it would allow an entry with neither checked. It did. I figure if I did win as a female, I would be disqualified pretty quickly. So I did the right thing and am now entered as a genderless human being.

Yay for that!

This is not an old image from Weta’s archive somewhere. It’s released just minutes ago, and what these individuals are looking at is a new sculpture: one promised to be at Comic-Con. (click to see the entire photo)

And while we haven’t a good idea of just what this object d’mystery is (looks awfully much like a steed, dunnit?), it should warm the hearts of any SSW collector to see Richard Taylor, John Howe, and fan-fave sculptor, Brigitte Wuest, huddled around any particular lump of clay, sculpey, chavant or wax, no matter how pixelated it happens to be.

Which brings me to my pet speculation that The Hobbit may just have its official coming out party at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Let’s play CSI and “follow the evidence” shall we?

• Peter Jackson will attend SDCC this year for the first time, officially, to promote District 9 (Neil Blomkamp’s film which he is producing). Surely he could spare a seat for Mr. Del Toro as well on the charter jet out of New Zealand?
• theonering.net, via an MTV news story, has reported that casting for Bilbo will be announced in “a couple of weeks” (we’re liking Michael Sheen here at the [[AP]])
• And finally we have this teaser from Weta Collectibles– and while it’s no big shock to see Weta honcho RT pictured with any statue, the presence of a Mr. John Howe certainly gives it much Tolkien flavored intrigue, though it is acknowledged that Mr. Howe is a designer with great versatility (and thus not guaranteeing this Hobbit-related). Brigitte Wuest can take credit for sculpting some of the most acclaimed of Sideshow Weta collectibles, and if this is indeed a Hobbit statue, you can bet it will be welcomed with open arms.

I’ve long dismissed the idea that a Weta collectible could serve amongst the first glimpses of this long anticipated film, but think how often leaks from big name films come courtesy of ill-begotten toy packaging scans nowadays. And if James Cameron can serve up a good bit of Avatar for a video game, why not have Weta Collectibles at the front line of Hobbit hype? If I were running Weta Collectibles I would be lobbying hard for it!

Regardless of how far off the mark this all might be (the timing still seems impossibly early), it’s exciting that the cogs it seems are really beginning to spin. Let’s party like it’s 1999, shall we?

One fuzzy bespectacled visionary for another. That’s what is being reported by The Hollywood Reporter this morning, and fans being fans, are running with it as a done deal.

Guillermo del Toro is in talks to direct back-to-back installments of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit”….Principal photography for the films, which will be shot simultaneously, is tentatively set for 2009. The production budget is estimated at $150 million per film. The release of the first film is slated for 2010 and the second in 2011.

I’d be delighted should it come to pass. Guillermo was always my top choice in the instance that PJ were to decline the reins himself– and I’ve firmly suspected this would be the case ever since the big Hobbit announcement broke a month ago. It strikes me as even more exciting a prospect, to have a fresh cinematic take on Tolkien with Jackson’s hands still very much in the stew. This won’t -can’t- be less than anything of a collaboration; a double dose of geekiness straight to the veins

The mishmash of each director’s roster of players is salivating too– Doug Jones and Andy Serkis working together with Weta? Yes please. “You KNOW that Doug Jones is gonna be something awesome in this“, says Harry at AICN. Can’t argue with that.

Jackson and Del Toro are two peas in a mischievious movie-making pod. I can’t wait to see what emerges when they dip their collective hands into Gandalf’s wagon.

• The story breaks at The Hollywood Reporter
• Harry Knowles blabs about blabbing with GDT
• theonering.net’s take– where readers voted GDT second place

Know what a million geeks cheering simultaneously sounds like? Today would’ve been as good a day as any to find out, as Tolkien’s “The Hobbit” is officially announced with Peter Jackson producing. No director attached yet, and some sources make as if the position may be eventually filled by PJ himself. I think if he was gung ho about it, they surely would have sorted that out by now. We will not see the barefooted one at the helm again is my prediction, though I hope I’m wrong.

* MGM and New Line will co-finance and co-distribute two films, “The Hobbit” and a sequel to “The Hobbit.” New Line will distribute in North America and MGM will distribute internationally.* Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh will serve as Executive Producers of two films based on “The Hobbit.” New Line will manage the production of the films, which will be shot simultaneously.

* Peter Jackson and New Line have settled all litigation relating to the “Lord of the Rings” (LOTR) Trilogy.

Said Peter Jackson, “I’m very pleased that we’ve been able to put our differences behind us, so that we may begin a new chapter with our old friends at New Line. ‘The Lord of the Rings’ is a legacy we proudly share with Bob and Michael, and together, we share that legacy with millions of loyal fans all over the world. We are delighted to continue our journey through Middle Earth. I also want to thank Harry Sloan and our new friends at MGM for helping us find the common ground necessary to continue that journey.”

• Theonering.net in hysterics
• Aintitcool lets the fur fly
• Sideshow Freaks jump for joy
• The Shadow and Flame approves; one person doesn’t care
• All quiet on the Weta Holics front, hopefully not for long
• BDboystoys ponders the return of Sideshow Weta