The Hobbit Toys & Action Figures - Release Dates, Preview Pictures

It’s official, the Hobbit is going to have a range of toys, figures and games to coincide with the release of this long awaited film. In this article we give you an advanced preview of what to expect from the Hobbit toys, look at pictures of figures, we look at release dates and basically tell you anything we can about toys for the Hobbit film to be release by Warner Bros.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is scheduled for release on December 14^th 2012. The following year we get the second part of the film The Hobbit: There and Back Again. These two films are the long awaited prequels to the massively successful Lord of the Rings films. It has recently been announced that there will be a range of toys and figures out that will be closely based on the film. Warner Bros have given the rights for these toys to a company called The Bridge Direct. First of all let’s tell you a little bit about this company.

So chances are you may not of heard of The Bridge Direct. When Warner Bros announced that the rights for the Hobbit had gone to this company there were no doubt a few eyebrows raised. Despite being a relatively new company The Bridge Direct already have a strong presence in the toy market. They have only a few products so far, you may not have even heard of them but names such as Zhu Zhu Pets, Bobby Jack, Inkoos and Justin Beiber Dolls may ring a few bells.

This company has big ambitions and is looking to really increase it’s presence in the international toy arena and no doubt winning this contract will go along way to helping them achieve that. One of the main reasons why this company may have won the contract is that quite a few of it's leading members were involved with other companies who worked on the Lord Of The Rings franchise. So this gives them the experience to take forward into this new venture. So now you know a little bit about the company making the products, what can we expect from the Hobbit toys? Well let’s take a look and see.

Now we have been given a release date of some time in October although we have also been told you should be able to buy online by September. This is what we were expecting as they were sure to be out before the first Hobbit movie, An Unexpected Journey was released. If we get a specific date in October for release we will let you know. This is without a doubt going to be one of the most hotly anticipated film releases of the last decade so chances are the toys are going to be big sellers.

The Bridge Direct have now said they will be releasing action figures, adventure packs and collectable figures with some impressive detail. If you are into role playing games then there will be accessories produced such as a Sting sword, an Orcrist sword and even a battleaxe. Rumour has it that Sting will actually glow blue just as it does in the story. It is thought that the toys will be of a similar range to ones that were released for LOTR.

In July at Comic-Con the Bridge Direct previewed some of their new toys. a few more details regarding price and what Hobbit action figures we will be getting came out. As expected we will be seeing a replica Sting sword, there will be a deluxe version priced at around $25 and also a role playing sword priced at around $12. We will also see a Dwarven Battle Axe which is expected to retail at $15. The sword will glow and will also have some sounds that it makes.

As well as these role playing toys we will also of course be getting some action figures. There will be two kinds released, a 6 inch version and a 3 ¾ inch version. These will be sold both in packs and individually. There are packs such as the beast pack, the Goblin Battle pack and a few other to choose from. Prices of the smaller figures look like being around $8 per figure whereas the more detailed larger figures will be around $15. There are three figures we know of so far that will be released in both 3 3/4 inch versions and also 6 inch versions, these will be Bilbo, Gandalf and Thorin Oakenshield. Of the three inch figures we have seen an interesting one where we get Legolas and Tauriel in a twin pack. Tauriel is a new character brought in by Peter Jackson who will lead the Mirkwood elves. There is also a nice little figure of Gollum coming out in the smaller version.

As well as all the good guys as you might call them, there are also some bad guys coming out. One of these that looks really good is the Goblin King or if you read the book, the Great Goblin. This figure is one of the smaller ones and comes in a twin pack with Thorin Oakenshield. The Goblin is massive and very ugly as you would of course expect, he also comes with a nasty looking weapon. Second in command to the Goblin King is Grinnah and you can get a figure of this scary looking goblin, he is also a smaller figure. The third figure we have seen is in a twin pack with Gandalf and is known as Bolg the leader of the Orcs. This is a great looking figure and we are expecting it to sell very well.

You can also buy a box set of five well known characters in the smaller versions of the figures, these will retail at $30. The Bridge Direct will see this as their big chance to really make an impression so they will be putting all their resources into making these toys. In recent months there has also been an announcement regarding much awaited Hobbit Lego, so let’s take a look at that.

Although the Bridge Direct have the license for the regular Hobbit figures, another company have won the license to create larger version of the toys. The company Neca are well known for producing 1/4 scale figures or models based on a range of movies. Going back a few years they brought out a few amazing Lord Of The Rings figures, the most impressive of these was the giant Balrog. Due to the size and price of these figures they do tend to only be found in specialist shops or online but they are widely available.

The first official release from Neca looks like being a version of Gollum. This was previewed at Comic Con in July although we should point out that Neca had labeled this figure as 'not final', so it may still change slightly before they release it. By the look of it there are plenty of movable parts on the upper body so you can adjust Gollum as you see fit. The detail on the face really does look good. This figure is around 12" tall so a fair decent size, and remember this is when he is squatting down!

In recent years Neca have been improving their work and some of the figures they have come up with are truly stunning. With the release of the Hobbit movie we will be seeing some more exciting releases from this company. Currently we are unsure of what new figures we will be getting but how exciting would it be to see a giant Smaug released. As we get nearer to the release of the film more details will no doubt emerge and we can then give you a few more details about these impressive looking creations from the Neca company.

In June a company that we have long associated with the LOTR films were also now given the license to bring out Hobbit collectibles. Weta Workshop make many of the props for the Tolkien films and they have been closely involved with the making of The Hobbit movies. This obviously gives them a unique insight into what we will see in the films. So later in the year we are going to see a range of collectibles brought out from Weta. These will include things such as dioramas, statues, art work and even jewelry. For over ten years Weta have been bringing out items based on The Lord Of The Rings and there is now a vast bag catalogue of items available.

It will be interesting to see what new products Weta bring to the table later in the year. They have said they will be previewing some of their new ideas at Comic-Con in San Diego, which takes place in July. The whole list of new products should be available to buy around October time. I'm sure fans would love to see a life size version of Sting and Orcrist and maybe a nice statue of Smaug.

There have been rumours floating around for months now about the possibility of Hobbit Lego. People were disappointed that we were never given any Lord of the Rings Lego sets. But all that is about to change. In a massive deal with Warner Brothers Lego have been given the licences to use both Hobbit characters and LOTR characters. Lego have now brought out seven new Lord Of The Rings sets and they are expected to release Hobbit Lego to coincide with the release of the first film. Since then though we have been told it may not be until early 2013 when we actually get our first look at Hobbit Lego sets.

The fact is though that all this is massive news for Lego fans around the world and no doubt we will see some really impressive Lego sets coming out. Now the LOTR sets are finally out we can get an idea of what to expect from the Hobbit sets. If you have not had chance to see the new LOTR sets then we can tell you that they are very impressive and fans will not be disappointed in any way. When the new line of Hobbit Lego hits the shops we should really be in for a treat.

Now we do indeed have details about the new Hobbit sets. The first one previewed at Comic Con was called An Unexpected Gathering and features Bilbo at his home in the shire. The set features Bilbo, Gandalf and four of the Dwarves as the minifigures. The minifigures really do look impressive especially the dwarves, each one as their own unique details and style. The detail that goes into Bag End really is impressive and this first set looks like being really good. Along with this one there will also be five other sets released at the end of the year. This will be one based on Gollums Cave, a set based on Mirkwood and the spiders, one of Bilbo's escape in the barrels, a set featuring lots of goblins and Orcs and one that is based around the underground world of the Orc King. When more details are released about these other new sets we will let you know all the information we can give you.

Another company who have recent signed a deal with Warner Brothers to bring out some toys relating to the movie are Ravensburger. This popular German toy maker specialise in jigsaws and we have been told to expect some 2D and 3D Hobbit puzzles coming out later in the year and also possibly some card based games. Wrebbit is another company who are planning on bringing out some 3D jigsaw puzzles, they already have a line of LOTR puzzles and so they are now going to be working on some Hobbit ones as well.

If chess is your game then fear not, Eaglemoss have you covered in this area. This company specialise in chess pieces and boards and they have now obtained the license for both the Hobbit and the LOTR. So over the next few years they will be releasing various collectible chess sets based on Tolkien's work. This is a company with a fine history of making chess pieces so we should see some really nice pieces from them.

So now all there is to do is sit back and wait. The Two Hobbit films will no doubt capture the imagination of millions, the toys will also be really big business. So until we do actually get some prices, pictures, and more information we can just all look forward to the release of this exciting film and the toys that go along with it.