The filmmakers of the Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy return to the fantasy land for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (out Dec. 14), which premieres a trailer Wednesday.
It's the first of three movies based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, published 75 years ago on Friday â?? The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug debuts Dec. 13, 2013; The Hobbit: There and Back Again on July 18, 2014.
PHOTOS: Exclusive photos from 'The Hobbit'
The Lord of the Rings followed the Hobbit named Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) as he traveled to Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring; the prequel The Hobbit features another Baggins Bilbo (Martin Freeman) who goes on a quest to find the treasure guarded by the dragon Smaug.
"I'm not a huge fan of fantasy for fantasy's sake," Jackson says. "I like Tolkien's work because of the language, the cultures he wrote about and they're anchored in a very real historical mythology that he created."
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