BitterSweetLife

Downsized in the euphemistic sense, as in canceled. (In Tolkien's world, you can't get much smaller than a hobbit.)

Peter Chattaway reports the grim details about lawsuits that New Line Cinema is facing from the Tolkien estate, the HarperCollins publishing company, and possibly others. From the AP Press report:

The plaintiffs seek more than $150 million in compensatory damages, unspecified punitive damages and a court order giving the Tolkien estate the right to terminate any rights New Line may have to make films based on other works by the author, including "The Hobbit."

Such an order would scuttle plans New Line has in the works to make a two-film prequel based on "The Hobbit."