McKellen to return to the screen as Gandalf

Ian McKellen will play the wizard Gandalf in the two-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit, precursor of the Lord of the Rings saga.

The 68-year-old British-born actor told Empire magazine that he had met with Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, who will write and direct the two films scheduled to be released in 2010 and 2011.

Del Toro, whose credits include Pan's Labyrinth, confirmed that McKellen would reprise his Oscar-nominated role in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

"Obviously, it's not a part that you turn down," McKellen said. "I loved playing Gandalf."

Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson  and his partner Fran Walsh will executive produce the two films.

Production company New Line said the first film will be a straight adaptation of The Hobbit, which depicts the journey of hobbit Bilbo Baggins to Lonely Mountain to reclaim its treasures from the dragon Smaug.

The second film will be an original story detailing the 60 years between Baggins' return from Lonely Mountain and the beginning of the Fellowship of the Ring, the first volume in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Filming of both movies will begin in 2009.