Back in January, Saoirse Ronan (The Lovely Bones, Hanna) was reported to have been cast in director Peter Jackson’s return to middle earth with The Hobbit: Part 1, and she was rumored to be playing the part of Itaril, a Silvan Elf. Confirmation of her casting wasn’t made by some tabloid, but by way of casting director Ros Hubbard, who mentioned Ronan’s casting in the film during an interview about Irish-born actors.

One month after that report, Ronan herself spoke with The Irish Times about appearing in the The Hobbit, and the actress took the opportunity to clear up that report:

“No, nothing has actually been confirmed yet. I’d love to get a role in The Hobbit. I think everybody in the world would like a role in The Hobbit.”

Most people, including yours truly thought that this was merely a stall tactic and she would officially announce it when all the contracts were signed and everything was official, especially considering Ronan’s affinity for her Lovely Bones director and the opportunity for an actress all of seventeen years-old to join the cast of what will likely be an epic, award-winning duo of films.

Apparently, Ronan was actually offered and/or truly considering the role, as she told Empire Magazine:

“I loved the book and we were talking about if for a while, but I would have been tied up for a long period of time – they’re shooting for over a year – and there were other projects that I had to consider in the meantime.”

So there you have it! Sadly, we won’t be seeing Ronan as the Silvan Elf warrior.

The Hobbit: Part 1 is currently slated to hit theaters December 2012.

The Hobbit: Part 2 is currently slated to hit theaters December 2013.

The films star Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Richard Armitage, Cate Blanchette, Elijah Wood, Sylvester McCoy, Christopher Lee, Aidan Turner, Rob Kazinsky, Graham McTavish, John Callen, Ken Stott, Mikael Persbrandt, Ryan Gage, Jed Brophy, William Kircher and Stephen Hunter.