OK gang, this is it. It's officially official! Actor Ian Mckellen has officially signed on to reprise his role as Gandalf in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit! Now lets all sit back relax and take a deep breath of awesome relief. Sure, we knew that this is what would eventually happen, but now there's no more guessing. He's all set and ready to go.

We just barely reported that Andy Serkis would return to the role Gollum in Peter Jackson's two-part Hobbit film series. Elijah Wood also signed a deal recently to return as Frodo, and Cate Blanchett will play Galadriel once again. There's an offer currently out to Orlando Bloom to return as the elf Legolas, but the deal isn't set in stone yet.

Martin Freeman is already set to play Bilbo Baggins is both films. As for the rest of the cast, Richard Armitatge (MI-5 and Captain America: The First Avenger) will play Thorin Oakenshield, the leader Company of Dwarves that sets off to fight the dragon and reclaim the Lonely Mountain. Kili and Fili, members of the Company of Dwarves will be played by Aidan Turner (Being Human) and Rob Kazinsky (Eastenders) respectively.

Graham McTavish who starred in Secretariat will play Dawlin. John Callen who starred in Power Rangers Jungle Fury will catch a major break as Oin. Stephen Hunter of All Saints will play Bombur. Mark Hadlow who starred in King Kong will play Dori. Rounding out the cast is Peter Hambleton, who starred in The Strip will play Gloin.

I'm incredibly happy that we will see McKellen as Gandalf again. The Hobbit starts shooting Feb. 14 in New Zealand.