'The Hobbit' filming 'may be moved to UK'

Filming on Sir Peter Jackson's two-part Hobbit movies may shift from New Zealand to the UK, it has been claimed.

According to The Daily Telegraph, Jackson has cited a dispute with New Zealand's actor's union as the reason why the production may be moved.

Fran Walsh, Jackson's wife and creative partner, has suggested that the UK could be an ideal location to film the Lord Of The Rings prequel.

"They have had people in the UK taking location photographs," she told Radio New Zealand.

Walsh continued: "They’ve got a huge studio there that Harry Potter has vacated, the ex-Rolls Royce factory [in Leavesden], that they say would be perfect for us."

In an official statement, Jackson expressed his disappointment with possibly having to cease working in his native country.

He asserted, however, that production on The Hobbit could no longer be held up by "unjustified industrial action" by New Zealand Actors Equity, which has called for an international boycott of the film.

The filmmaker said: "It appears we cannot make films in our own country even when substantial financing is available.

"New Zealand Equity’s unjustified industrial action against The Hobbit has undermined Warner Brothers's confidence in New Zealand as a stable employment environment, and they are now, quite rightly, very concerned about the security of their $500m (£317m) investment."

The country's Prime Minister John Key stated that losing The Hobbit would be a "tragedy" and promised to meet with executives from Warner Brothers next week to attempt to resolve the crisis.

In September, representatives for the US Screen Actors Guild suggested that they would urge their members not to work on The Hobbit until an agreement between the two sides can be reached. They have since called off the boycott.