Hobbit's Peter Jackson has surgery for ulcer

Filming of Peter Jackson's two-part adaptation of The Hobbit has been delayed after the director was admitted to hospital in New Zealand for a perforated ulcer.

Jackson, 49, was in satisfactory condition after the surgery, performed Wednesday. He had been suffering severe stomach pains.

Publicist Melissa Booth said he is resting comfortably and expected to make a full recovery. In a statement Thursday, Booth said Jackson's illness is "not expected to impact on his directing commitment to The Hobbit beyond a slight delay to the start of filming."

Jackson stepped in to take on the adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit after original director Guillermo del Toro quit the project last year.

Jackson, who directed the Lord of the Rings trilogy, is also producer and co-writer of the two Hobbit films.

In 2003, he won the best director, best picture and best adapted screenplay Oscars for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

The Hobbit film adaptation has been beset by problems, including the financial struggles of its studio, MGM, as well as an industrial relations dispute, which saw New Zealand unions threaten to boycott the shoot. The latter was resolved with the intervention of the New Zealand government.

Ian McKellen is to play Gandalf and Andy Serkis is Gollum in the two films, with Martin Freeman set to star as hobbit Bilbo Baggins. The movies are currently scheduled for release in December 2012 and December 2013.