More "Pink Panther," More "Thomas Crown" and Yes, More "Hobbit"

The MGM head talks to Variety about his tentpole plans. Steve Martin, God help him, is going to make another Pink Panther movie. In this one, he teams up with bumbling cops from all over Europe to fight a crime wave. Pierce Brosnan is making the more happily anticipated sequel to "The Thomas Crown Affair" starting in March. No more "Rocky" films, he insists, since Sylvester Stallone is getting a little too old to box (not if the new one is a smash, believe me). And finally, "The Hobbit." Nothing is going to happen until director Peter Jackson resolves his money dispute with New Line. But once that settles, MGM wants to make two "Hobbit" movies at the same time, a la "The Lord of the Rings." The first will be based on "The Hobbit." The second, absurdly enough, would be based on footnptes (!) and other source material to serve as a link between "The Hobbit" and "The Lord Of The Rings." "The Hobbit" certainly needs to be made and Jackson will surely capture the quieter, gentler tone of that more kiddie-oriented book. But a fifth movie put together from scraps? That would be awful. In any case, they need to get going so Ian McKellen isn't too old to play Gandalf.