Two hundred fans of the Hobbit movies have jetted into Wellington to be the first to watch the final episode of the film trilogy.
The fans were the winners of a global competition to see the final episode - The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.
The Hobbit fans were greeted at the capital's airport by Weta Workshop's Sir Richard Taylor, who had a very special surprise for them: the 75 percent scale sculpture of Smaug the Magnificent, considered to be the last of the great dragons in Middle Earth.
The fans of the trilogy were chosen from more than 140,000 entries received worldwide.
The Hobbit fans are trekking across the country to visit the film set sites of the trilogy, including the Hobbiton movie set near Matamata, and Queenstown, where many battle scenes were shot.
Photo: Unknown
In the lead-up to last night's exclusive screening, the group went to Weta Workshop to view post-production facilities, where much of the magic seen on the big screen is produced.
The competition winners watched the uncut version of the final part of the trilogy with director Sir Peter Jackson at his Miramar headquarters last night.
They were under strict instruction not to discuss the movie with media.