So, there’s been a rumour going around the internets that Tobey Maguire might well be playing Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit. But, before you get carried away and start picturing the Spider-Man star in a curly wig and hairy feet, that rumour has been debunked… by Maguire himself.
The story began on Latino Review when an alleged quote from Maguire, hinting that he would like to work with Guillermo del Toro, quickly turned into a story that Maguire’s agents had been talking with the Hobbit producers – in other words, Peter Jackson – about playing Bilbo. With **Spider-Man 4 **shooting in the spring, that would just about leave him time to prepare for The Hobbit, which starts next summer.
But, before it could really take hold, Maguire himself issued a statement, shooting the rumour down in flames. “I have not met with del Toro. We don’t have any near future plans,” Maguire told The Hollywood Reporter. “I don’t know if something got misconstrued or miscommunicated but the source was not accurate at all.”
However, he has left the door open, just in case. “I love Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson, and I certainly wouldn’t take myself out of the conversation,” he added. “But I haven’t read a script or talked to anybody about it.”
So there you have it. Tobey Maguire is definitely not playing Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit… except he might. Possibly. Maybe. Watch this space.
So what do you think, readers? Would Peter Parker make a good Bilbo? If not him, then who? Answers, as ever, down below.