By David Soberman
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Logo-
History
Originally known as The Disney Bros. Studio, the first Disney production (known as the Alice Comedies) debuted in 1923, since then Walt Disney Pictures has become a giant in the world of film production producing iconic films such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King. More known for their animation successes rather than their live action successes, Walt Disney Studios has shown that they are still growing as a production company as the recent acquisition of Marvel and Lucasfilms have sparked Disney live action into a hole new age of film making. [1]
Key Executives
Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer-The Walt Disney Company [2]
Allen F. Horn- Chairman, Walt Disney Pictures [3]
Chairman of The Walt Disney Studios, Allen F. Horn oversees worldwide operations for both Disney live action and Disney animation. This includes production, marketing and distribution for all films out of Walt Disney Pictures. [3]
Financials
Recently MSN Entertainment reported on November 12th that Walt Disney Pictures set a new all-time record with its global box office results in 2013. In 2013, Walt Disney Pictures/Buenavista distribution so far is third among film studios for the total market share of worldwide gross income. Of the entire market share (from January 1st to November 10th 2013), Walt Disney Pictures/Buenavista distribution generated an average of $1,256.1 million, accounting for 13.8% of the entire market share. Much of this financial success can be attributed to the recent release of the highly anticipated film Thor: The Dark World, which grossed $119,000,000 domestically through 2 weeks of it being released. Also the summer release of Iron Man 3 (another movie from the Marvel franchise) which grossed $409,013,994 domestically, and Monsters University (a production from Pixar animation) which grossed $268,227,670 domestically. Also recent financial transaction of $4.05 billion towards buying out well known and respected film production company and brand Lucasfilm LTD. is also expected to pay big dividends for Walt Disney Pictures in the long run. [4] [5] [6]
Recent Releases
Monsters University
Picture courtesy of IMDb [7]
A prequel to the extremely popular Disney Pixar film Monsters Inc. (directed by Pete Doctor and David Silverman), Monsters University (directed by Dan Scanlon) is the story of how two best friends Mike Wazowski (voiced by Billy Crystal) and James P. (Sully) Sullivan (voiced by John Goodman) meet in collage and how many different events (specifically the scare games) lead them form becoming worst enemies to best friends. [7]
Monsters University began its theatrical release on June 21st where it shown in 4,004 theaters grossing $82,429,469 in its opening weekend. By the end of its run, it would be shown in theaters for about 21 weeks (147 days). [8]
After being in theaters for 21 weeks, Monsters University generated a total gross $743,294,513 ($268,227,670 domestically and $475,066,843 worldwide). The Film also received an average rating of 65 out of 100 which is a bit low for a Pixar film, but since this film is more driven towards a family demographic it is not unexpected that the film would not be overly revered by critics.There has also been recent speculation that this could be the first year since Cars 2 (squeal to Cars) that Pixar will be completely shut out at the Academy Awards. [7] [8] [9]
Thor: The Dark World
Picture Courtesy of IMDb [10]
A squeal to the popular films (out of the Marvel Brand) Thor and The Avengers, Thor: The Dark World follows the story of Thor (the god of thunder, played by Chris Hemsworth) and his quest to save the world form his most intimidating enemy yet. Through this quest, Thor will be reunited with (once love interest) Jane Foster (played by Natalie Portman) and will have to trust his brother and once enemy Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston), but in order to save earth, he might just have to give up everything. [10]
Another huge success from the Marvel Brand, Thor: The Dark World made it’s wide release theatrical debut on November 9th 2013, generating $85,737,841 in 22,322 theaters, grabbing the number one spot on the weekend box office. So far, in about 2 weeks of being in theaters, the film has made $359,900,000 worldwide ($119,000,000 domestically and $240,900,000 worldwide) out of a production budget of $170 million. [11]
None of the Marvel films gathered much in the way of critical acclaim, and Thor: The Dark World was no exception gathering a rating average of only 54 out of 100. But, these films are rather popular with viewers as the film received a viewers rating of 7.7 out of 10. Since all of the Marvel films were extremely popular comic books before becoming films, it was no surprise to Walt Disney Pictures that the Marvel franchise would be so popular, making it an extremely good investment for them. [10] [11] [12]
Coming Soon
Picture Courtesy of IMDb [15]
Recently announced at the semi-annual D23 expo event in Anaheim California, Disney debuted plans for a multitude of projects coming in the near future. First up is Walt Disney Animation’s film Frozen set for theatrical release November 22nd, 2013. This film is the second film in a few years fir Walt Disney Animation as this film follows the success of last years Oscar Nominated film Wreck-It-Ralph. Also highly anticipated is the Disney live action film Maleficent staring Angelina Jolie, set for theatrical release May 30th, 2013. It seems that Walt Disney Pictures is starting to viewer interest for the film with the recent release for the first teaser trailer for the film. [13] [14] [15]
Also Coming soon to theaters is a follow up to Disney live action film The Muppets, Muppets Most Wanted is set for theatrical release March 21th, 2014. Known for their musical numbers and cameo appearances by popular celebrities, Muppets Most Wanted (directed by James Bobin) is set to feature appearances from Rickey Gervais, Tina Fey, and Ty Burrell. [16]
Early Oscar Contenders
Picture Courtesy of www.rottontomatos.com
Normally, Walt Disney Pictures does not gain much traction with regard to Oscar buzz and their films. But lately, the upcoming film Saving Mr.Banks (Out for theatrical release December 20th, 2013) is drawing some Oscar intrigue with performances from Tom Hanks (playing Walt Disney) and Emma Thompson (playing P.L. Travers). Specifically, Tom Hanks has been gaining Oscar buzz for his performance as Walt Disney. Even though critics say that it may be unlikely that he wins for this role, they do say that is does warrant a nomination. [17] [18]
Upcoming Projects
Picture Courtesy of IMDb [20]
Probably the most highly anticipated films yet to be released by Walt Disney Pictures is Star Wars: Episode Seven (official title yet to be released) and Avengers Age of Ultron, both set to release in 2015. For Star Wars Episode Seven, it has been rumored that the film will feature members of the original Star Wars cast (from episodes 4,5, and 6), but there has been very little disused publicly about the film as Walt Disney Pictures executives have kept a very tight lid about the details of the upcoming film. Things have been a little different for Avengers: Age of Ultron as Walt Disney Pictures and Marvel executives debuted the first teaser trailer for the film at the live action film portion of their D23 expo. [19] [20]
Sources
[1] History of The Walt Disney Company
[4] Box Office Mojo- 2013 Studio Box Office Rankings
[5] Box Office Mojo- 2013 Domestic Grosses
[6] Article- Disney to Acquire Lucasfilm LTD.
[8] Box Office Mojo- Monsters University
[9] Variety Article- Oscars’ Animation Race: Will Pixar Be Left Out This Year?
[10] IMDb- Thor: The Dark World
[11] Box Office Mojo- Thor: The Dark World
[16] IMDb- Muppets Most Wanted
[18] Article- 5 Actors With More Than One Shot At Oscar This Year