Who should direct "The Hobbit"?

[Kitanna]

Guillermo del Toro is another consideration if Raimi can't commit to The Hobbit. The look and feel of Pan's Labyrinth was really breathtaking. Perhaps del Toro could do the same from The Hobbit.

[Thenamir]

Personally, if Sam Raimi can't do the film (and PJ isn't going to rearrange his schedule), I agree that Del Toro would be another excellent choice.

[Galendor]

Originally Posted by Kitanna

Guillermo del Toro is another consideration if Raimi can't commit to The Hobbit. The look and feel of Pan's Labyrinth was really breathtaking. Perhaps del Toro could do the same from The Hobbit.

According to the link provided by Kitanna, here's a quote from del Toro about The Hobbit:

“I’ve heard some rumblings, but nothing official. I don’t want to think about it because it’s such an eventuality,” Guillermo del Toro told EW. “It’s the only Tolkien book I read. I tried my best to read the Lord of the Rings, the trilogy. I could not. I could not. They were very dense. And then one day, I bought The Hobbit. I read it and I loved it. So it would be a privilege. But listen, I wish I knew.”

Based on this, I may want to change my vote away from del Toro. Shouldn't being able to read (and appreciate) LOTR be a prerequisite for directing The Hobbit? Of course, I wouldn't be surprised if Raimi, Burton, and others haven't even read LOTR either.