The Hobbit: Meet The Dwarves

11 December 2012

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is one of the most highly anticipated movies of 2012 as we return to Middle Earth for the first time in nearly a decade.

And while we are going to be seeing plenty of familiar faces and characters return all of the dwarves that we will be introduced to are new characters.

So let's meet them and the actors that are taking on the roles:

- Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage)

Thorin leads the band of dwarves on their quest to reclaim what is theirs from the dragon Smaug.

Thorin is the son of Thráin, son of Thrór, King Under the Mountain and is played by Richard Armitage.

This is the biggest role of Armitage's career to date after making a name for himself in TV with the likes of Spook and Strike Back.

Thorin may be the leader of this company but Armitage admits that he is a character who suffers with self-doubt as he is unsure that he can be the leader that they need.

- Dwalin (Graham McTavish)

Dwalin is the son of Fundin and younger brother of Balin and the first dwarf to arrive at Bag End to enlist the help of Bilbo Baggins.

Graham McTavish is set to play Dwalin in the movie - an actor who has juggled movie and TV work throughout his career.

McTavish has worked on movie such as Secretariat and Columbiana and this is his first major role in a big blockbuster film.

- Balin (Ken Stott)

Balin is the brother of Dwalin and in mentioned in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring as the cousin of character Gimli.

Balin is the second eldest dwarf in the company, Thorin being the oldest, and is the second to arrive at Bag End behind his brother.

Ken Stott is best known for his UK TV work but has enjoyed a career that has seen him juggle film, TV and theatre work.

The Hobbit trilogy is the biggest movie role for Stott to date.

- Fili (Dean O'Gorman)

Fili is one of the twelve companions on the Quest of Erebor and is the brother of Kíli and the son of Dís.

Fili is one of the youngest dwarves on the mission, along with his brother, and he is one of the characters who is often used as a scout.

Dean O'Gorman, an New Zealand actor, takes on the role of Fili in the movie - taking over from Rob Kazinsky who dropped out of the project.

O'Gorman is not a huge name outside of his native New Zealand but all that is set to change with this trilogy.

- Kili (Aidan Turner)

Kili is the brother of Fili and the pair are the nephews of Thorin Oakenshield.

Aidan Turner made his name in British TV and really grabbed everyone's attention with Being Human on BBC Three.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is only the second feature length film for the actor after appearing in Alarm.

We will be seeing him on the big screen next summer as he is set to star in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.

- Dori (Mark Hadlow)

Dori is the brother of Nori and Ori and is widely regarded as one of the strongest member of the company.

But disaster strikes for Dori when he drops Bilbo Baggins as he carries him through the tunnels of the Misty Mountains.

Mark Hadlow will play Dori and he is an actor who has worked with Pert Jackson before on King Kong.

King Kong was his biggest role to date before he reunited with the filmmaker for this trilogy.

- Nori (Jed Brophy)

Nori is the brother of Ori and Dori and is played by Jed Brophy.

Brophy is another actor from New Zealand who is no stranger to working with director Peter Jackson having appeared in Braindead, King Kong and The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

- Ori (Adam Brown)

Ori is the brother of Norl and Dori and this role makes the big screen debut for actor Adam Brown.

The character of Ori gets a mention in The Fellowship of the Ring as Gandalf reads out his final addition to the Book of Mazarbul when it is found in Moria.

Brown is a stage actor with no film experience but this is a role that will put him on a global stage.

- Oin (John Callen)

Óin is the son of Gróin and the brother of Gloin. The movie marks the acting debut for John Callen.

- Gloin (Peter Hambleton)

Gloin is the brother of Oin and also the father of Gimli who appears in The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Peter Hambleton takes on the role of Gloin in the movie and the New Zealand stage and TV actor is making his big screen debut with this movie.

- Bifur (William Kircher)

Bifur is the cousin of Bofur and Bombur and is a descendant of Durin.

William Kurcher is an actor from New Zealand who has enjoyed a successful career in both TV and movies over the years.

And while he has juggled both mediums since the eighties The Hobbit will be the biggest project of his career to date.

- Bofur (James Nesbitt)

Bofur is the brother of Bombur and the cousin of Bifur and James Nesbitt takes on the role.

James Nesbitt is an actor who has enjoyed a very successful career with the likes of Cold Feet, Murphy's Law and Bloody Sunday - roles that have shown that he is both a comedy and a dramatic actor.

And while he has appeared in the movies such as Cherrybomb, Millions and Coriolanus this will be his biggest movie to date.

- Bombur (Stephen Hunter)

Bombur rounds off the group of twelve that set off on the Quest of Erebor and he is the brother of Bofur and the cousin of Bifur.

Stephen Hunter takes on the role of Bombur in what is his first movie outing since Ladies Night back in 1995.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is released 13th December

FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw

Richard Armitage Could Relate To Thorin

11 December 2012

Richard Armitage reveals that he could relate to the self-doubt of his character Thorin in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

The actor is one of the new faces that ventures to Middle Earth this week as he plays the leader of the dwarves in the new Peter Jackson movie.

And Armitage admits that he knew there was a responsibility to get this character right and it took him a while to believe that he could really do it.

Speaking to Flicks and Bits the actor said: "There is always building within him this paranoia that he's not a good enough leader, and that weighs him down. I have experienced that same feeling as an actor in this role."

"I was aware of taking on the responsibility of that character, so there was something I could latch onto there, as one of the people who loved The Hobbit book and had envisioned that character.

"It took me a while to be convinced that I could do it, it wasn't until I saw some sketches, this one particular pencil sketch... there was something about this character's eyes and the way that his hands are crossed, I thought, 'I think I can do this, I can pull this off'."

Armitage is joined on the cast list by Martin Freeman, James Nesbitt, Ken Stott, Graham McTavish and Aidan Turner while Ian McKellan and Andy Serkis reprise the roles of Gandalf and Gollum.

The role of Thorin is set to be the biggest movie role of Armitage's career to date after making his name in TV with Strike Back and Spooks.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is released 13th December.

by Helen Earnshaw

Richard Armitage: Eye Candy of the Week

Richard Armitage stars as Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and he’s a handsome gent so it only made sense to have him as our Eye Candy of the Week!


14 December 2012

Funnily, Richard didn’t start acting at a young age. Instead, he chose to go to Budapest to join a circus for six weeks.

After he’d come to his senses, he enrolled in London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and completed his three year course.

He then took part in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s productions of Macbeth, The Duchess of Malfi and Hamlet.

Richard then moved into TV and took on a number of small roles in many TV shows but it was in 2004 that he made his break.

He took his first leading role as John Thornton is North and South and this is where the majority of his female fan base come from.

In 2006, Richard took the major role of Guy of Gisborne in the BBC series, Robin Hood, in which he starred in until the series finished in 2009.

One of his biggest roles to date was as Lucas North in Spooks. He joined the TV series in series 7 and stayed with it for two seasons until he character died.

In 2011 he starred in the massive Captain America: The First Avenger as Nazi spy Heinz Kruger. Although it was a small role, he gave it his all a gave a brilliant performance.

He now stars in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey as Thorin Oakenshield in which he and his friends travel to the Lonely Mountain with Bilbo Baggins to reclaim their treasure.

It’s his biggest role to date and is sure to define him as an actor, propelling him into A-list proportions.

It’s been announced that he will star in both The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and The Hobbit: There and Back Again and he will also star in thriller Black Sky in-between.

Do you think Richard Armitage deserves Eye Candy of the Week? Let us know by commenting below or tweeting us @FemaleFirst_UK

Cara Mason @cara_mason

Richard Armitage and The Other TV Stars Who Went Big

15 December 2012

With The Hobbit coming out this weekend, starring Martin Freeman and Richard Armitage, we’ve decided to take a look at the other TV stars that have made it flawlessly from the small screen straight to the biggest of blockbusters.

Richard Armitage

After winning the hearts of millions in his role in period drama North & South, Richard continued to pop up throughout the world of British TV, most notably as the leather clad baddie Guy of Gisbourne in the BBC’s Robin Hood and as smooth spy with a past to hide Lucas North in high stakes espionage drama Spooks.

Throughout his time on UK TV, his leading man qualities were clear to see. While it’s easy to concentrate on his, let’s say aesthetic qualities, he showed he was able to carry a show with consummate ease, comfortably being the best thing about the troubled Robin Hood.

This isn’t even Armitage’s first blockbuster; he was involved in last year’s big screen adaptation of Captain America, be it in a fairly small role as hit assassin Heinz Kruger. His lead role in The Hobbit should catapult him into the stratosphere.


Will Smith

While it would be more accurate to put him on a list of rappers turned TV stars turned movie stars, that list would pretty much begin and end with him.

From the very first episode of Fresh Prince though, you could tell that Will Smith wasn’t going to be on the medium for long. Effortlessly charming, incredible affable and

That proved to be the case, as when the show came to an end, he found himself the lead in enormous action film Independence Day and has never looked back since.

Bruce Willis

Remember when he still had a full head of hair, didn’t just wear vests? We had to go searching in out memory banks too for the role that made Bruce Willis famous on TV to begin with.

Starring as a private eye in hit show Moonlighting, Willis set paces running across the US, with fans enraptured by his and co-star Cybil Shepard’s amazing on-screen flirtations.

After four years on the show though, Bruce finally got on to the big screen in the guise of vest wearing, terrorist shooting copper John McClane. The film became the biggest action film of the year, and thrust Willis into the very highest echelons of film star.

Michael J Fox

Jumping straight from a sitcom of all things into the lead role of a Robert Zemeckis sci-fi romp isn’t the easiest trick to pull off, but the young Canadian proved it could be done, landing the coveted role of Marty McFly in Back To The Future.

The role made him a worldwide sensation and a bone fide movie star of the very highest degree in the 1980s.


FemaleFirst Cameron Smith

Richard Armitage Was a Bossy Dwarf

'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' actor Richard Amitage relished being able to take control of 13 fellow dwarves during a boot camp in preparation for the film.


23 December 2012

Richard Armitage enjoying bossing his fellow dwarves around while filming 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'.

The 41-year-old actor - who plays powerful dwarf warrior Thorin Oakenshiel - enjoyed taking on the role of leader and taking control of the unruly gang of 13 dwarves during a physically demanding boot camp.

He explained: "There was one improvisation that we did during our dwarf boot camp where we were taken outside and it was the first time that I actually found the confidence to command a crack unit of troops. We were crouching in tress and building campfires...

"It was brilliant to feel the aura amongst the dwarves. I think the training process we went through, the physical, really bonded us together and I think when we came to work on set it was pretty moving."

Richard's revenge-consumed character Thorin is on a mission to reclaim his father's lost kingdom of Erabor from Smaug the dragon, but the actor admits he is actually extremely laid back as person so it was a challenge to embody his alter ego.

Speaking at the press conference for 'The Hobbit' at London's Claridge's Hotel, he told BANG Showbiz: "He's got quite a lot to be angry about I think! For Thorin it's very much a now or never moment.

"One of the Nordic translations for Thorin comes from Thor and I feel he carries that thunder very much in his heart. As a person I'm quite calm and placid so it's nice to give vent to a little anger!"