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Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins in "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug."

(Courtesy photo)



The next trip to Middle Earth is nearly upon us: Tickets for "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" will go on sale nationwide at 9 a.m. EST Thursday, Nov. 21, 2013. The movie officially opens Dec. 13.

The movie is the second in the trilogy of "Hobbit" films directed by Peter Jackson. The previous film, "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," will be paired with "Desolation" for double-features leading to the new movie's Dec. 13 midnight debut.

RELATED: Review: 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' meanders, but will please the Tolkien faithful

The double feature will begin at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 12, and tickets will be $15.

"Journey" raked in $13 million in midnight sales in the U.S., on its way to a $1 billion worldwide gross.

As with the first film, "Desolation" will be released in 3-D, IMAX, IMAX 3-D and, in select theaters, in 48 frames-per-second high-definition 3-D.

John Serba is film critic and entertainment reporter for MLive and The Grand Rapids Press. Email him at jserba@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter or Facebook.