page_title: The Hobbit (film series)
section_title: Theatrical
hierarchical_section_title: The Hobbit (film series) / Release / Theatrical
caption_attribution_description: English: A standee outside the Embassy Theater in Wellington, New Zealand at the world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
context_page_description: The Hobbit is a film series consisting of three high fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson. They are based on the 1937 novel The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, with large portions of the trilogy inspired by the appendices to The Return of the King, which expand on the story told in The Hobbit, as well as new material and characters written especially for the films. Together they act as a prequel to Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. The films are subtitled An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug, and The Battle of the Five Armies.
  The screenplay was written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Jackson, and Guillermo del Toro, who was originally chosen to direct before his departure from the project. The films take place in the fictional world of Middle-earth sixty years before the beginning of The Lord of the Rings, and follow hobbit Bilbo Baggins, who is convinced by the wizard Gandalf the Grey to accompany thirteen dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield, on a quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug.
context_section_description: The world premiere for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey took place on 28 November 2012 in Wellington, New Zealand, with the film's wide release in New Zealand on 12 December. 100,000 people lined the red carpet on Wellington's Courtenay Place for the premiere. The entire event was also broadcast live on TV3 (New Zealand), and streamed over the Internet. Tickets to the film's midnight screenings in New Zealand sold out within minutes of going on sale, prompting director Peter Jackson to say that the fans who missed out "may get something special" which could include getting to see the film "possibly even a minute or two before anyone else". The film was released on 13 December 2012 in the United Kingdom and 14 December 2012 for some other parts of the world. It has a runtime of 169 minutes (2 hours and 49 minutes). The film grossed over $1 billion at the box office, surpassing both The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers nominally.
  The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug premiered on 2 December 2013 in Los Angeles, and was released internationally from 11 December 2013. It grossed over $958 million in box office worldwide. Like the previous installment, it surpassed both The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers in nominal box office performance.
  The final film The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies premiered on 11 December 2014 in London, and was released internationally from 12 December 2014. The release for the third film was originally set for an 18 July 2014 release, but was pushed back when X-Men: Days of Future Past, was announced to be released on the same date, as direct competition to the third installment. It grossed over $956 million in worldwide level in box office, and as the previous two films, it surpassed both The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers nominally, although it didn't manage to surpass the previous two films of the series.
caption: A standee outside the Embassy Theatre in Wellington, New Zealand at the world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.
exif: {"Image Make": "NIKON", "Image Model": "COOLPIX S3000", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Aperture 3.4.2", "Image DateTime": "2012:11:28 20:31:27", "Image ExifOffset": "194", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/30", "EXIF FNumber": "24/5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "200", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2012:11:28 20:31:27", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2012:11:28 20:31:27", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "Y", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "2", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "17/5", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "49/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "4000", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "3000", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "54", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Portrait", "EXIF GainControl": "Low gain up", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0"}