NEW YORK (AFP) ― Steven Spielberg announced in New York a sequel to his 3-D movie version of the comic book hero Tintin.

He told a press conference Sunday that “Lord of the Rings” director Peter Jackson would direct the new film and that he had already chosen the book by the Belgian author Herge that would serve as the basis for the script.

Spielberg was promoting the U.S. premiere on Dec. 21 of his “Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn,” which already premiered in Brussels in October and has been on European, Middle Eastern and Indian release.

In the sequel, the comic books’ bumbling Thompson detective twins “have a much bigger role,” Spielberg said.

This time, Spielberg will produce and Jackson will direct, swapping their roles in “Unicorn.”

“It’s being written right now and he’s directing it after he does ‘The Hobbit’ and I’ll produce it with him as he’s produced this with me,” Spielberg said.

“We have the story and we have the book we’re adapting from Herge and we can’t wait to get started.”