TRAILER: 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'

It won't hit theaters until the passing of another year, but already The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is prepping audiences for its long-awaited release. The first trailer for the film is out — nearly ten years to the day after Peter Jackson's first The Lord of the Rings (LOTR) installment debuted.

In The Hobbit, a prequel to the Oscar-winning LOTR trilogy, Bilbo Baggins (played by Martin Freeman) goes on an adventure to save the Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the dragon Smaug. Baggins is accompanied by Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) and Gandalf the Grey (Sir Ian McKellen). Also reprising their roles from the LOTR films are Andy Serkis, Orlando Bloom, Elijah Wood and Cate Blanchett, who have minor parts in The Hobbit.

The making of The Hobbit has been an unexpectedly difficult journey all its own, complicated by wrangles and law suits between Jackson and New Line Cinemas over a variety of issues. Pan's Labyrinth director Guillermo del Toro was once on board to helm the picture but left after the production schedule was stalled.

Watch the new trailer here:

Read more here:

SPOILER: 'The Hobbit' Casts Orlando Bloom, New Details Revealed

Will 'The Hobbit' Help Peter Jackson Get His Groove Back?

Peter Jackson Reveals 'The Hobbit' Secrets