Bell Media is talkin’ Tolkien in a comprehensive marketing campaign supporting the final installment of The Hobbit trilogy, The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies. It is the third consecutive year Bell and Warner Bros. Pictures Canada have partnered to promote the blockbuster film series.
“Hobbit Week” begins Dec. 8 with exclusive coverage of the film on Bell’s nightly entertainment show eTalk, as well as the Space show InnerSpace and morning program Canada AM. Additional coverage will come from CP24, Virgin Radio and TSN Radio properties.
The program will also see The Hobbit director Peter Jackson, screenwriter and co-producer Philippa Boyans, and star Lee Pace head to Bell Media’s Toronto headquarters this weekend, where they will tape a 30-minute episode of eTalk called eTalk & The Hobbit: One Last Time.
The episode will be filmed before a live studio audience and will air on CTV on Dec. 22. The trio will also conduct an interview for a special edition of Space’s flagship show InnerSpace, set to air on Dec. 17.
eTalk will also attend the film’s Canadian premiere and official after party, with behind-the-scenes coverage and one-on-one interviews from the events appearing nightly during “Hobbit Week.”
In addition, eight Bell Media radio stations – including Toronto’s 999 Virgin Radio, Vancouver’s The Beat 94.5 FM, Calgary’s 98.5 Virgin Radio and Halifax’s 101.3 The Bounce – will provide coast-to-coast exposure for the film with a series of contests offering tickets to advance fan screenings.
Toronto’s Virgin Radio station is also offering listeners a chance to win a grand prize of a trip for two to Los Angeles for the film’s Hollywood premiere. TSN 1050 in Toronto is inviting listeners to tweet pictures of their “Middle Earth” inspired moustaches using the hashtag #Movember1050 for the chance to win tickets to the Dec. 6 Canadian premiere.
The first two pictures in The Hobbit trilogy, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug have earned more than US$1.97 billion worldwide according to BoxOfficeMojo.com.
