The circle of life, indeed. When The Lion King hit theaters in 3-D, the Walt Disney company was not expecting it to be the cash cow that it’s turned into, as the re-release has made nearly $80 Million and isn’t done yet. It’s then no surprise that Disney has now slated four of their classics for re-issue. All in 3-D. Check them out..
When the most anticipated movie of the weekend wasn’t reviewed for critics as is barely expected to crack ten million, yeah, we’re in the dog days. Dream House – which wasn’t screened for critics – could lead the pack of new films, and The Lion King looks to end its two week run at the top of the charts, which means we may see Dolphin Tale climb to the top slot. Or perhaps Moneyball, or… forget it Jake, it’s September.
Four new films hit theaters last Friday but none were able to dethrone The Lion King. The Disney classic stayed king with $22.1 million, bringing its total gross to $61.6 million. Brad Pitt‘s new critically acclaimed movie Moneyball followed The Lion King with an estimated $20.6 million. Although thrillers like Abduction and Killer Elite hit theaters, it was the kid-friendly Dolphin Tale that proved to be Moneyball’s biggest competition. The film came in third with $20.2 million. Taylor Lautner was the big attraction for Abduction, and even though the film came in fourth, it made much less – $11.2 million. And finally, there was Killer Elite, which came in fifth with $9.5 million.
Last weekend The Lion King dominated the box office. Blame a sleepy September for a reissue throttling the marketplace, and parents who were happy to take their kids to see a film they grew up on (how’s that for a circle of life?) The question with reissues is always if it’s going to behave like a special event and evaporate quickly, or if it plays like a normal kids film Surely Moneyball - the long-in-development picture now starring Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill - would rather not have to take on such big numbers with their smaller film. The same goes for Dolphin Tale, Killer Elite or Abduction. Continue Reading
17 years since its debut, The Lion King is still a favorite with audiences. This weekend the Disney film was re-released in 3D and audiences were more than spend a little extra to see their favorite film, reworked. The new version topped the charts with an unexpected gross of $29.3 million – we predicted it would rule with $13 million. The thriller Contagion fell from the top spot to second, garnering $14.4 million. Meanwhile, Ryan Gosling‘s artsy R-rated action film Drive came in third place. Other new releases included Straw Dogs and I Don’t Know How She Does It, which finished in fifth and sixth behind The Help.
Can you feel the love tonight? After Contagion took the box office last weekend, you would think that September might have some moves. Normally a very slow month, this weekend proves how slow that is if The Lion King (in 3-D) manages to trump everything else. Then again, the hottest of the new titles is Drive - the Cannes Best director winner – that has also managed to get a little backlash. Those not as impressed note that the film doesn’t cure cancer. Surely that means that cancer is cured by the other films opening this weekend, I Don’t Know How She Does It and Straw Dogs. If so, expect their numbers to sure.
The 3D trend is showing no signs of slowing down with Walt Disney Pictures announcing their line up of the latest 3D home entertainment titles. The studio has 15 Blu-rays slated to hit stores this year including The Lion King, Tron Legacy, Tangled, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Beauty and the Beast. All this time we’ve been waiting for them to re-release The Lion King and they just had to do it in 3D didn’t they? Check out the official press release below…
Movie producer Don Hahn was recently overseas in the UK checking out the pre-production of Tim Burton’s upcoming film, Frankenweenie. While there he dished some dirt to Empire about a few high profile properties including The Snow Queen, the Roger Rabbit sequel, and The Lion King or should we say, The Lion King in 3D?
