The forthcoming big-screen adaptation ofThe Hobbitcould be stretched to three movies, industry rumours have suggested.
The Hollywood Reporter and Entertainment Weekly both report that director Peter Jackson is in discussions with Warner Bros about the Lord Of The Rings prequel.
It is claimed that additional filming would be required if the story were to be stretched into three parts.

Dark Horizons claimed that the studio was at the point of agreeing to make the story a trilogy - so long as the logistics could be worked out.
The site quoted an insider as saying: "If we're going to do it, we have to make a decision. It's strongly driven by the filmmakers' desire to tell more of the story."
It also claims that a third film could mean a longer-than-planned trip to New Zealand next year for the cast to shoot additional scenes.
The first instalment, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, is due out on 14 December this year, while the second is slated for release on 13 December next year.
At the recent Comic Con event, Jackson told fans that he was keen to shoot more scenes for The Hobbit, even though filming ended at the start of the month.
However he refused to be drawn then on whether it signalled a third movie was in the pipeline - only commenting that such chat was "very premature".

[uuid=7014778b-c27f-4de4-976d-4be127aba24e]See the trailer for the first Hobbit movie[/uuid].