“The Hobbit” movie trilogy has gone past the billion dollar movie mark. The movie trilogy “The Hobbit” has cost more than double the amount spent than was spent on the three movies in the “The Lord of the Rings” series.

According to financial documents filed Friday by the New Zealand’s Companies Office in New Zealand, where the movies are being made, production on “The Hobbit” has cost 676 million New Zealand dollars, or $561 million at current exchange rates, through March. Studios usually release only rough estimates, if they release anything at all about their budgets. The Hobbit trilogy looks to be one of the most expensive movie productions in which two or more movies are shot at the same time.

The half a billion dollar figure for “The Hobbit” includes the 266 days of filming with actors that was completed last year. But it doesn’t add in the extra two months or so of “pick-up” shoots that have been done this year. “The Hobbit’s” budget will also probably include additional post-production costs as the next two movies in the trilogy are completed.

Warner Bros. and director Peter Jackson probably consider it a good gamble, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” raked in more than $1 billion at the box office.

Warner Bros. created a wholly-owned New Zealand company named “3 Foot 7 Ltd,” the estimated height of the movie’s hobbits and dwarves. New Zealand taxpayers put NZ$98 million into the Hobbit trilogy so far through an incentive scheme designed to attract big budget movies to the country.

Both Box Office Mojo and Guinness World Records estimate the most expensive single movie ever made was “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” with an estimated $300 million production tag. That movie, in conjunction with “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” — which was shot at the same time — held the previous record for the most expensive total production, costing an estimated $450 million to $525 million.

According to Box Office Mojo, “The Lord of the Rings,” Jackson’s previous trilogy, cost a $281 million. According to Box Office Mojo, The Star Wars prequel trilogy cost $343 million. Box Office Mojo tracks movie costs and box office receipts.

Peter Jackson is shooting both in 3D and at 48 frames per second, rather than the standard 24, for “The Hobbit.” The techniques add a lot to the budget, even if the higher frames per second technique gets mixed reviews. Jackson wants to give the audiences a more immersive experience with greater visual clarity.

The Hobbit trilogy is based on the J.R.R. Tolkien novel that follows the hobbit Bilbo Baggins on his quest to help a group of dwarves in their struggle against dragon Smaug. “The Hobbit” takes place before J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings.” Peter Jackson also directed that movie trilogy.

 “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” is set to hit theaters in December. The final movie, “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” is scheduled for release in December 2014.