London -- Peter Jackson, director of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, says he has been dropped from the movie adaptation of "The Hobbit".

Jackson said he was removed by New Line Cinema, which also has the rights to the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, reports ananova.com.

The studio apparently told Jackson that they would not allow him to make any more movies unless he dropped a lawsuit over the income from the first "Lord of the Rings" film.