Peter Jackson with a copy of one of his favourite books- JRR Tolkien's The Lord Of The Rings.
However, yesterday's announcement that JRR Tolkien's The Lord Of The Rings trilogy will be filmed in New Zealand, with Jackson at the helm, has allowed the Wellington-based director to remain in the country.
"If this project hadn't happened I would have possibly been forced to go to the States and make a film," he said. "I have to make something, it's been so long since I shot anything.
"No matter how long you are developing (a project), you reach a point where it is going to happen or not, and we are now over that bump and in the home straight."
The project, which starts shooting next year, has an estimated budget of $264 million. It is expected to inject about $200 million into the New Zealand economy.
Jackson, who will spend 3 1/2 years making the trilogy, said this was the first time three films had been shot back-to-back. He is understood to have a contract with US film financier Miramax, which in turn has a deal with distributor New Line Cinema.
Benedict Carver, a reporter for the Los Angeles newspaper Variety, described the announcement as "fairly major" in Hollywood production terms and "huge" for New Zealand's film industry.
"I think people over her think Peter Jackson is a very strong film-maker - he is strong in this quirky area, given the other films he has made."
About three-quarters of the production's $264 million budget would be spent in Wellington, coproducer Tim Sanders said.
"We will have nearly 50 speaking roles available for Kiwi actors, and about 300 full-time Kiwi crew. On top of that, we will need about 15,000 extras and a vast network of suppliers, from equipment to hotels, from airlines to caterers."
A substantial chunk of the film would be shot in the southern lakes area and Central Otago, Mr Sanders said. This included Queenstown, Glenorchy, Alexandra and Te Anau.
He said the Nelson region had not been ruled out as a possibility.
New Zealand Film Commission chief executive Ruth Harley said the Lord Of The Rings being made in New Zealand was the best thing to have ever happened to the local film industry.
