according to sources close to the Hobbit production, it’s not over yet. New Line and MGM, the studios backing the Hobbit films, have since come back to Freeman with a proposed schedule that would allow him to shoot both projects. All parties are currently negotiating a deal....says THIS snippet over at EW. Obviously, the ultra-awesome Ian Holm previously portrayed Bilbo in Peter Jackson's (subsequently set) LORD OF THE RINGS films - this admittedly crude side-by-side comparison of Freeman (l) and Holm (r) suggests a strong resemblance, thus a not-terribly-surprising continuity.