San Diego Comic-Con 2009

Even Peter Jackson knows that the hearts and minds of Comic-Con's attendees are on Middle Earth—not necessarily the sci-fi movie he produced that's coming out next month. So the Lord of the Rings mastermind opened his District 9 promotional panel Friday by tossing hungry fans some succulent bits about the two-film adaptation of The Hobbit, to be directed by Guillermo del Toro.

"We are still three to four weeks away from submitting the first draft," Jackson told the 6,000-person crowd. He explained that the studios have not even green-lit the adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's 1937 fantasy novel about woodland creatures with furry feet. (Despite all the money and Oscars he racked up with his previous three movies about woodland creatures with furry feet.)

In terms of casting, Jackson said that it would be another two months before they would offer any roles. He did tell the audience that he'd be open to working with cast members from the LOTR trilogy. "Would I like to have Ian Holm play Bilbo?" Jackson mused. "Sure, I would love that."

Oh, and anyone looking for bits about his Tin-Tin project with Steven Spielberg? Try back next year!

After those few tasty Tolkien morsels Jackson kept the discussion focused on his latest produced feature, a political sci-fi movie that centers around a segregated South African city that turns against its alien population. Check out the clip above of Jackson introducing District at a "secret" screening here in San Diego, and then catch our tweets from the Con below:

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