‘The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies’ First TV Spot & New Banners

We’ve got just over a month before The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies charges into theaters, capping off more than a decade of the Peter Jackson-directed Middle-earth adventures playing on the big screen (in 2D, 3D, IMAX 3D and/or 48 FPS 3D, depending on the film). A final theatrical trailer for Battle of the Five Armies launched last week, and today we’ve rounded up the first TV spot (watch it above) to go along with some banners that dropped recently.

Battle of the Five Armies focuses heavily on the eponymous battle – a climactic action sequence that, in typical Jackson fashion, is a massive spectacle, clocking in around 45 minutes long – which ensues as various races of Middle-earth converge around the Lonely Mountain, now that young Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), and their Dwarf Company have driven out the terrible dragon Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch).


Elsewhere, though, Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen) has been captured by the great enemy Sauron in the form of The Necromancer (also Cumberbatch), drawing out the other members of Middle-earth’s White Council – Lady Galadriel (Cate Blanchett), Lord Elrond (Hugo Weaving), and Saruman the White (Christopher Lee) – into a fight to destroy the lord of darkness, before he regains his full strength.

While we know Gandalf will make it out of that fight alive (despite what the Battle of the Five Armies‘ marketing would have you believe), we’re still looking forward to watching the White Council confront Sauron directly, along with his most dangerous of minions (read: the Nazgûl/Ringwraiths). As evidenced by the film’s latest banners (see below), most every race of creature on Middle-earth gets caught up in this “scuffle” to claim Erebor for either the forces of good or evil, be it armor-clad trolls, the majestic eagles, or the hobbit Bilbo and his trusty sword, Sting.

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hobbit battle five armies gandalf bilbo 1024x470 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies First TV Spot & New Banners

hobbit battle five armies trolls banner 1024x470 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies First TV Spot & New Banners

hobbit battle five armies dwarves banner1 1024x470 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies First TV Spot & New Banners

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Jackson has described Battle of the Five Armies as being the “most emotional [and] intense” of the Hobbit film trilogy, and additionally indicated that it will be the most thrillingly paced installment of the trio, now that there are no more characters and/or subplots to be introduced after the first two installments laid out all the pieces on the table.

That should be welcome news for those who’ve struggled with just how sprawling these Hobbit films are compared to the original book by J.R.R. Tolkien – and would be all the more appreciative of a finale that’s closer to a political thriller set in Middle-earth (as Jackson has described it). It’s been a long and winding journey at times, no doubt, but here’s to finishing the Hobbit/Lord of the Rings cinematic six-chapter saga in style.

NEXT: Battle of the Five Armies is Peter Jackson’s Favorite Hobbit Movie

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The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies opens in U.S. theaters on December 17th, 2014.