There and Back Again ditched in favour of The Battle of the Five Armies.

Director Peter Jackson has revealed that the final instalment of his fantasy trilogy will be titled The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

The third film, which follows An Unexpected Journey and The Desolation of Smaug, was originally set to be called The Hobbit: There and Back Again. But Jackson stated that the decision to take the film from two instalments to three influenced the name change.

Writing on his Facebook page, Jackson said: “Our journey to make The Hobbit Trilogy has been in some ways like Bilbo’s own, with hidden paths revealing their secrets to us as we’ve gone along.

There and Back Again felt like the right name for the second of a two film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo’s arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film. But with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced - after all, Bilbo has already arrived “there” in the Desolation of Smaug.

“When we did the premiere trip late last year, I had a quiet conversation with the studio about the idea of revisiting the title. We decided to keep an open mind until a cut of the film was ready to look at. We reached that point last week, and after viewing the movie, we all agreed there is now one title that feels completely appropriate.

“And so: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies it is.”

Jackson added that the original title could be revived for a box-set comprising the trilogy: “As Professor Tolkien intended, There and Back Again encompasses Bilbo’s entire adventure, so don’t be surprised if you see it used on a future box-set of all three movies.

“Before then however, we have a film to finish, and much to share with you. It’s been a nice quiet time for us - Jabez and I happily editing away in a dark cave in Wellington - but those halcyon days are quickly coming to an end. It will soon be time to step into the light. Expect to see and hear much about The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in the coming months.

“And there’s also The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Cut, which we’re in the process of finishing, with over 25 mins of new scenes, all scored with original music composed by Howard Shore.

“It’ll be a fun year!”

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is set to begin its international release from Dec 10, 2014.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was released in Dec 2012 and made $1.02bn at the worlwide box office.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was released in Dec 2013 and made $953m at the global box office.