Wanaka is reportedly in the sights of the makers of The Hobbit after Maori elders refused to let Peter Jackson film at the North Island mountain which doubled as Mt Doom in Lord of the Rings.
The Herald on Sunday has reported that Maori elders have refused permission for the Oscar-winning director to use Mt Ngaurohoe again.
The decision comes five weeks before the scheduled start of filming.
Location scouts seeking alternatives have visited Taranaki, and Jackson had flown into Queenstown recently to inspect the mountain-ringed Lake Wanaka, the Herald reported.
