The Hobbit: Unexpected Cruelty
When
The Hobbit is released in December, audiences will see an adventure story set in a fantasy world. For the animals involved in the filming, however, the abuse and neglect that they experienced were far too real.
In all, five horses, 12 chickens, a pony, and several goats and sheep were allegedly maimed or killed. How can something like this happen when the unit production manager was warned and the production was monitored by the American Humane Association? Furthermore, this movie was directed by Peter Jackson, a master at computer-generated imagery (CGI). In a movie that features CGI dragons, ogres, and hobbits, CGI animals would have fit in perfectly. Jackson could have made
The Hobbit without using a single animal—and he should have.
