King ready for Kong

One day you're King of Hollywood. Then you're back on the job.

Director Peter Jackson placed the Oscar success of The Lord of the Rings firmly in the background yesterday and went back to thinking about his next movie.

Not to mention getting over the Oscar parties.

His attention then focused on meetings for his current project, a remake of King Kong for American studio Universal.

Jackson and two producers have received a record fee of $34 million, and the project will cost $200 million, about a third of the budget for The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

After the Oscar ceremony, Jackson went backstage at the Kodak Theatre to talk to the press. Then the partying started. His next stop was the Governor's Ball, the formal post-Oscar event held nearby.

Then it was on to The One Party, run by the biggest Rings fan website, at the Hollywood Athletic Club. The next party was hosted by the American backer of the trilogy, independent producer and distributor New Line Cinema.

In the small hours the Rings team continued their festivities in Jackson's room at a Los Angeles hotel. The 23 Oscars garnered by the film in 11 categories were placed on a table and the group gathered for photos.

Jackson admitted that making the trilogy almost killed him. But the joy of seeing The Return of the King sweep the Oscars made it all worthwhile.

Jackson revealed that, apart from King Kong, he was keen on another project: The Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien's prequel to the Rings trilogy.

Jackson returns to New Zealand early next week.