Kiwi director Peter Jackson says he has been dumped from two Lord of the Rings movies - The Hobbit and another Rings prequel - by movie studio New Line.

In an email sent to fansite theonering.net, Jackson and partner Fran Walsh said New Line was now "actively looking to hire another filmmaker for both projects".

The email said the demise of the partnership was due to an ongoing lawsuit with New Line over income from the first Lord of the Rings film, The Fellowship of the Ring, and a "limited time option" on the rights to make the films.