John Key says he has made it clear to Warner Bros that the Govt cannot go to extreme lengths to keep The Hobbit films in NZ.

The union behind an actors' boycott of The Hobbit has given an unconditional guarantee that it will not take any more industrial action against the film production.

Prime Minister John Key, who will meet high-powered executives from Warner Brothers in Wellington in the next two days, thinks there is a "50-50" chance of The Hobbit being filmed in New Zealand.

Sir Peter Jackson has taken a shot at an Australian union for intervening in the NZ film industry and unsettling plans to film The Hobbit in this country.

The head of the company that produces Outrageous Fortune believes the fallout over The Hobbit has made actors Robyn Malcolm and Jennifer Ward-Lealand "damaged goods".

A video clip has highlighted the anger and high stakes involved in the row over The Hobbit.

TVNZ dished out an average of almost $50,000 each to 44 staff whose contracts were "terminated" in the past financial year.

Warner Bros and actors' unions were ready to bury the hatchet at the beginning of this week, a series of emails shows.

Bosses are calling for a guarantee the industrial disputes threatening to derail The Hobbit won't be repeated in the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

Warner Brothers have confirmed that they are considering alternative locations in which to film the two Hobbit films.

The Government is leaving the door open to more tax incentives to keep the shooting of The Hobbit films in New Zealand.

Robyn Malcolm had to be escorted by police from an inner city Wellington restaurant last night after being threatened by technical workers worried the Hobbit won't be made in NZ.

A filmmaker and actor who worked on LOTR and Avatar says union demands to standardise pay rates could cripple dozens of NZ films.

Production of The Hobbit films moving offshore has raised the ire of many Herald readers. We asked where the blame should lie.

The Hobbit is slipping away from New Zealand despite the best efforts of its producers, the film's co-writer Philippa Boyens says.

Sir Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh's statement on The Hobbit and a release from the Council of Trade Unions in response.

The loss of The Hobbit film overseas is a "potential tragedy for the New Zealand film industry", Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Chris Finlayson said this morning.

Sir Peter Jackson? Acting unions? Warner Bros? Gollum's salary demands? Who caused what?

The producers of The Hobbit say production is being moved off-shore after industrial action 'undermined Warner Bro's confidence in NZ'.