Entertainment | The Hobbit New Zealand Will Keep The Hobbit Government works out a deal with Warner Bros. By Evann Gastaldo Posted Oct 27, 2010 8:16 AM CDT Copied In this photo taken June 28, 2010, a sculpture of Gollum, the villainous "Lord of the Rings" hobbit, stands in front of a welcome sign, in Hobbiton Town, Matamata, New Zealand. (AP Photo/New Zealand Herald, Christine Cornege) The protests full of people who wanted to keep The Hobbit in New Zealand apparently worked: The country’s government worked out a deal with Warner Bros. to ensure the Peter Jackson-directed endeavor will film there. A labor dispute threatened to kill filming two months ago, and Jackson threatened to move the movie if need be. Instead, the government increased financial incentives for the film, and will clarify laws covering film industry workers, the Telegraph reports. Read These Next Melinda French Gates reacts to her ex showing up in new Epstein files. Sarah Ferguson said she cut off Epstein. Not quite, emails show. Trump signs bill to end the latest government shutdown. President's Trump's fight with Harvard just took a new turn. Report an error