PETA on 'Hobbit' Animal Abuse Charges: Wranglers' Concerns Were Ignored

2:24 PM PST 11/21/2012 by THR Staff

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In a statement, the advocacy group calls on director Peter Jackson to use computer-generated models instead of live animals: "He is the CGI master and has the ability to make the animals and other interesting creatures in his movies 100 percent CGI."

PETA says Peter Jackson is "attempting to deflect" charges of animal abuse during the filming of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

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In a statement, the group - which is planning protests at the film's premieres in the U.S., U.K. and New Zealand - says whistleblowers' concerns about the welfare of animals during the shoot were ignored.

STORY: Peter Jackson Denies 'Hobbit' Animal Abuse Claims

PETA's full statement is below:

Five whistleblowers reported more than two dozen animal deaths during the production of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. They raised concerns not just once but repeatedly to both the head wrangler and the head of production about the unsafe housing conditions for animals and about Shanghai the horse, who was hobbled (his legs reportedly tied together when he proved to be "too energetic" for his rider). But their concerns were outright ignored. With the exception of the hobbled horse, all claims of animal injury and death are directly related to how the animals were housed and fed. Jackson attempts to deflect these serious charges by talking about the use of animals during action sequences—even though these damning incidents did not take place when cameras were rolling. Two horses went over steep embankments and died (one was found with her head submerged in water), a horse sustained a severe injury after being put in with other horses despite known problems, sheep broke their legs in sinkholes, and chickens were mauled by dogs—all instances of extreme negligence. It seems to PETA that instead of vainly defending himself, Jackson should be giving a firm assurance that this will never happen again. He is the CGI master and has the ability to make the animals and other interesting creatures in his movies 100 percent CGI, and PETA calls on him again to do so.