Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings) is currently in New Zealand filming the eagerly anticipated big screen adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit. The film, which will be released in two parts, has a shooting schedule of 254 days.

Entertainment Weekly managed to score the first three images from the film’s set. The photos showcase actors Martin Freeman as hobbit Bilbo Baggins and Ian McKellen as Gandalf the wizard.

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