Originally published on JRR Tolkien Examiner.

Although none of the entities involved have issued official press releases, it has become clear that The Sun newspaper’s report yesterday, that actor Tobey Maguire signed to play the titular role in The Hobbit, was false.

Ain’t It Cool News received the following email responses from producer Peter Jackson…

No truth at all, although we’re all big fans of Toby [sic]. We are currently auditioning for Bilbo, and a month or two away from any announcements.

… and director Guillermo del Toro:

Its not true, gordito-

This neither confirms nor disproves The Sun’s claims that Jackson and del Toro are actively pursuing Maguire for the role. But the claim that Maguire has already signed for the role appears to be patently false.

As of this writing, The Sun has not posted an update or retraction regarding this story on its web site.