Eight years after the final "Lord of the Rings" movie came out, Peter Jackson is back in Middle-earth.
The director has officially kicked off filming his two-film adaptation of the "LoTR" prequel, "The Hobbit," in New Zealand -- and this weekend, Jackson shared two photos of him on the set.
One photo, showing him inside a home on the Shire, is a mirror image of one he took when he started filming "The Fellowship of the Ring" back in 1999 (right) -- highlighting Jackson's incredible weight loss.
The new Hobbit films will be filmed at the same time and will center on Bilbo Baggins as he takes an epic journey. Martin Freeman will play Bilbo and Ian McKellen will return to play Gandalf.
