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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition



The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Blu-ray w/ Statue



The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition 3D



The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug 3D Blu-ray w/ Statue




August 5 Update:

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has officially announced both the 3-disc standard Blu-ray and 5-disc 3D Combo Pack releases of director Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Extended Edition. Both versions of the 186-minute Extended Cut arrive on Blu-ray on November 4th.

The new Extended Cut includes 25 minutes of additional film footage that extends individual scenes, making this the must-see, definitive version for fans. Both versions of the Extended Edition include more than nine hours of new bonus features that also enrich the experience of the Trilogy as fans gear up for the December 17th theatrical release of the third and final film, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

One of the Extended Cut's new scenes can be found embedded below. In it, Bilbo and the Dwarves stumble across a broken bridge while in the forests of Mirkwood.

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, with Martin Freeman in the central role of Bilbo Baggins, and Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield. The international ensemble cast is led by Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ken Stott, James Nesbitt and Orlando Bloom as Legolas. The film also stars Mikael Persbrandt, Sylvester McCoy, Aidan Turner, Dean O'Gorman, Graham McTavish, Adam Brown, Peter Hambleton, John Callen, Mark Hadlow, Jed Brophy, William Kircher, Stephen Hunter, Ryan Gage, John Bell, Manu Bennett and Lawrence Makoare.

Synopsis: The Desolation of Smaug continues the adventure of Bilbo Baggins (Freeman) as he journeys with the Wizard Gandalf (McKellan) and thirteen Dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield (Armitage), on an epic quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain and the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor. Having survived the beginning of their unexpected journey, the Company travels East, encountering along the way skin-changer Beorn and a swarm of giant spiders in the treacherous forest of Mirkwood. After escaping capture by the dangerous Wood-elves, the Dwarves journey to Lake-town, and finally to the Lonely Mountain itself, where they must face the greatest danger of all–a creature more terrifying than any other; one which will test not only the depth of their courage but the limits of their friendship and the wisdom of the journey itself: the dragon Smaug (Cumberbatch).

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Extended Edition is presented in 1080p with DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround. Special features available on both the 2D and 3D releases of the Extended Edition include:

-Audio Commentary with Director/writer/producer Peter Jackson and writer/co-producer Philippa Boyens
-New Zealand: Home of Middle-Earth, Part 2 - Travel with Jackson and his team across the stunning locations of New Zealand, transformed by the filmmakers into Middle-Earth.
-The Appendices Part 9 & 10: The next two installments in Jackson's sprawling "Appendices" production documentary showcase an immersive multi-part history of the filming of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, covering preproduction in the various departments of the film in the months leading up to the start of principal photography, training, the work done on set and in the world of its digital effects.
-More details to come...

Inside Information...
Our journey to make The Hobbit Trilogy has been in some ways like Bilbo's own, with hidden paths revealing their secrets to us as we've gone along. “There and Back Again” felt like the right name for the second of a two film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo’s arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film. But with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced—after all, Bilbo has already arrived “there” in the "Desolation of Smaug".
When we did the premiere trip late last year, I had a quiet conversation with the studio about the idea of revisiting the title. We decided to keep an open mind until a cut of the film was ready to look at. We reached that point last week, and after viewing the movie, we all agreed there is now one title that feels completely appropriate.
And so: "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" it is.
As Professor Tolkien intended, “There and Back Again” encompasses Bilbo’s entire adventure, so don’t be surprised if you see it used on a future box-set of all three movies.
Before then however, we have a film to finish, and much to share with you. It’s been a nice quiet time for us—Jabez and I happily editing away in a dark cave in Wellington—but those halcyon days are quickly coming to an end. It will soon be time to step into the light. Expect to see and hear much about The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in the coming months.
And there’s also The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Cut, which we’re in the process of finishing, with over 25 mins of new scenes, all scored with original music composed by Howard Shore.
It’ll be a fun year!

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