The Hobbit, Peter Jackson's forthcoming adaptation of the classic JRR Tolkien fantasy, is fast becoming a Lord of the Rings reunion party. According to reports on the web, Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins in Jackson's three-part version of Tolkien's later tome, is in talks to join the cast of the new film.

Deadline first hinted yesterday that Wood was in talks to appear in the new films, even though his Lord of the Rings character does not appear in the book The Hobbit. The website previously revealed that both Orlando Bloom, who played elf Legolas, and Cate Blanchett's Galadriel would also make appearances. Those characters are also absent from the book, which sees Frodo's older cousin Bilbo travelling with a band of dwarves and the wizard Gandalf to redeem a hoard of treasure from a wily old dragon.

Tolkien fan site theonering.net further reports that Frodo will appear in a framing device for Jackson's film, reading from a book telling the story of The Hobbit in order to place it in the same filmic universe as The Lord of the Rings.

"The plans are to feature Frodo in the opening sequence of the films," writes the site. "The fictional book, and either the telling from it or the reading of it, will establish Frodo in the films experiencing Bilbo's story. Viewers [will] learn the tale of The Hobbit with a familiar Frodo getting the tale as well."

Jackson's new two-part film is set to begin shooting next month following long delays. Of greater concern to fans than Wood's involvement will be the fact that Ian McKellen, who played Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and Andy Serkis, who played Gollum, have yet to sign on the dotted line for The Hobbit. Both characters play vital roles in Tolkien's earlier book.