The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader Review Thread (Spoilers)

[GreenScar]

Mark Johnson Talks Third Narnia

ComingSoon.net recently got a chance to talk to producer Mark Johnson about the third installment in the "Narnia" franchise, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which Fox Walden will release in theaters on December 10, 2010 release.

"Andrew Adamson, who wrote and directed the first two, is a producer on it with me and Michael Apted is directing," said Johnson. "It's a whole new franchise, I think it's really benefiting from it. It's a slightly different look. This one is different from the others, it's in that ['Seventh Voyage of Sinbad,' old Harryhausen films] league and they go from island to island having adventures. I'm very excited about it."

He added that "Adamson said something that was so smart early on. I had just re-read the book and he said, I don't want to make a film based on 'The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe,' I want to make a movie based on my recollection of it. He took a 9-year-old boy's imagination. He saw things that are not even in the book. Lewis left, sometimes major battles, on a single page, so Adamson just re-imagined it."

In the third film, Edmund and Lucy Pevensie, along with their pesky cousin Eustace Scrubb, find themselves swallowed into a painting and on to a fantastic Narnian ship headed for the very edges of the world.

Joining forces once again with their royal friend Prince Caspian and the warrior mouse Reepicheep, they are whisked away on a mysterious mission to the Lone Islands, and beyond. On this bewitching voyage that will test their hearts and spirits, the trio will face magical Dufflepuds, sinister slave traders, roaring dragons and enchanted merfolk. Only an entirely uncharted journey to Aslan's Country – a voyage of destiny and transformation for each of those aboard the Dawn Treader – can save Narnia, and all the astonishing creatures in it, from an unfathomable fate.

-------------------------------------------------------
The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Trader is having troubles moving forward. Due to the box office disappointment of Prince Caspian, Trader may be scaled back or delayed. I've already posted that they've been resigned to film in Mexico, here's a little more on the story. The movie has not been green lit as of yet.

Disney and Walden Media are still reportedly moving forward with the third installment in the franchise, and director Michael Apted has been monitoring "Dawn Treader's" development since June 2007. Actors have been cast ("Son of Rambow" star Will Poulter has been hired to play Pevensie cousin Eustace Scrubb), and studio space has been lined up (at Baja Studios in Rosarito Beach) for a four-to-five month-long shoot, which is allegedly slated to begin in late January.

But Disney hasn't actually green-lighted production of "Voyage of the Dawn Treader." Given that Disney and Walden Media executives are concerned that the new movie may earn even less than "Prince Caspian" did, strict cost-control measures have now been put into place.

The original plans to shoot "Dawn Treader" on location in Malta, Iceland and Prague have been dropped. Two-thirds of this film will be shot in Mexico in the huge water tank that James Cameron used for "Titanic."

The site added that Walden Media reportedly wants Disney to fund half of a $140 million production. But given that Disney is contractually obligated to cover the costs of all prints and advertising on the Narnia movies, Disney is supposedly pushing for a $100 million version instead. It's also likely that a release date will be pushed back to 2011.

Source

[Anthony P]

kind of sad, I wanted the whole series.

[GreenScar]

I'm sure it will still happen. They're just going to have to be more creative. Sometimes it ends up being a really good thing.

[MarkJ801]

Yeesh! I really hope this gets done, I really loved the first two movies.

[nbxfan]

They made the mistake of releasing against to many other big films. Maybe if the DVD sales are thru the roof it will help.

[GreenScar]

But aren't they releasing it the week before Dark Knight? Might not have been the best idea.

[Lepidopterous]

I know the first one was great but haven't seen Prince Caspian. Can't imagine how they could go wrong with another one though...

[kevinbr100]

yeah they went up against batman. i think it would have done fine if they released at another time. with no hp i bet it would have been box office gold this holiday season. but no way they could have seen that WB decision coming.

[Ator the Invincible]

The only reason Prince Caspian under-performed was the incredibly idiotic release date. The movie was great but should have been a December release. Opening up between Iron Man and Indiana Jones was just suicide. What were they thinking?

Anyway, I'm sure the DVD sales/rentals will be good. I want them to at least make the main 5 non-prequel movies. I could live without "The Magician's Nephew" and "The Horse and His Boy" if need be.

[owa]

Disappointing since I'd like to have the whole series but I guess this was to be expected considering the performance so far. Anyway, hopefully they'll work it out.

[Blu Titan]

Originally Posted by jasonbird

I'm sure it will still happen. They're just going to have to be more creative. Sometimes it ends up being a really good thing.

Agree! They don't have to spend a zillion dollars to make a good film in this series. Anyways, most of the film takes place in the boat...I am sure they can make this work.

[masob98]

Im looking forward to picking up prince caspian today. Im sure I will enjoy it. And yes hopefully they move forward with the third installment.

[GreenScar]

Here's the worry:

Narnia budget: $180 million
Worldwide Gross: $749 million
Home Media: $353 million

Prince Caspian budget: $200 million
Worldwide Gross: $419 million

If it does $300 million in home media, everything is fine, but that's quite a drop for a sequel, and going off the formula of $2.5X put's a film in the black, Prince Caspian won't make a profit until after it sells $80 million on home media. It WILL happen, it's just a large drop off and so I imagine Disney is worried to throw another $200m at a third film.

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by Ator the Invincible

The only reason Prince Caspian under-performed was the incredibly idiotic release date. The movie was great but should have been a December release. Opening up between Iron Man and Indiana Jones was just suicide. What were they thinking?

Technically, it was what Walden Media was thinking--
They wanted to start dating other studios, and had "The Water Horse" as their big Christmas '07 movie for Sony, leaving aside "Seeker: Dark is Rising" for Fox in October...
They didn't want to cram three of their own movies competing for dollars, especially against the expensive one, so...well, what could be wrong with a May opening--Espcially with Indy 4 already getting folks out to theaters, and hey, how much money could those Iron Man and Speed Racer movies make, anyway??

Anyway, I'm sure the DVD sales/rentals will be good. I want them to at least make the main 5 non-prequel movies. I could live without "The Magician's Nephew" and "The Horse and His Boy" if need be.

Word is that they want to go through "Silver Chair" (since Edmund and Lucy get written out of the end of "Treader"), delay with "Nephew", and then go to "Horse" while Anna Popplewell and Georgie Henley are old enough to play their twentysomething Adult selves.

[Blu Angel]

I know there must be many people who loved the first one, but didnt go see the second in the theater, but were just going to buy on Blu-ray or DVD instead.. im one them.. I bet they make good money from BD and DVD sales, to decide to make another.

[lutefisk69]

Originally Posted by Blu Angel

I know there must be many people who loved the first one, but didnt go see the second in the theater, but were just going to buy on Blu-ray or DVD instead.. im one them.. I bet they make good money from BD and DVD sales, to decide to make another.

This was my plan. I Will buy Prince Caspian and will buy the Dawn Trader when it comes out. Not sure if I would go see it in the theater though.

[GreenScar]

It's gonna happen! Here's the latest:

It was recently reported that Disney would be abandoning "The Chronicles of Narnia" franchise after only two installments. The studio said that even though the first film brought in $750 million in worldwide ticket sales, the second one struggled to earn $420 million and it cost much more to make. If this pattern continues, the third film will be the most expensive out of the three and will bring in the least amount of money.

Seems logical, but LA Times decided to a closer look into the situation to make sure that there was nothing else that is keeping Disney from completing at least a "Chronicles of Narnia" trilogy.

According to the paper, "Prince Caspian" (second film) cost roughly $225 million with nearly $100 million spent on special effects. In addition, the studio spent as much as $175 million on worldwide marketing. So clearly, "Prince Caspian" did not turn out to be a winner for Disney.

On top of that, Walden Media topper Phil Anschutz has forced Disney to renegotiate Walden's contract after the first film became a big success. Anschutz insisted that Disney either gave back a sizable chunk of the studio's lucrative distribution fee or Anschutz would distribute the "Narnia" series on his own. Believing the franchise was too good to give up, Disney reluctantly changed the terms of its Walden deal, but the renegotiation poisoned relations between them. When the second film faltered, there was so little good-will left over that Disney had little motivation to hold on to the franchise.

According to the paper, Walden is moving ahead with "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" (third installment), which will have a new director, Michael Apted, but will bring back much of the cast from the previous films. Since 20th Century Fox already markets and distributes certain projects under its Fox-Walden banner, it is believed that Fox will pick up the franchise. But if the studio passes, both Sony and Warner Bros have expressed strong interest in the project.

[pujols4mvp]

I wish it stick with Disney but in the end I really just want this movie.

[thedarkangel1975]

I still don't understand why they moved the release to the summer and gave the original date to the freakin Waterhorse. That movie was and never rank in the money like the Narnia series. I hope either Fox, Warners/New Line or Sony grab this series.

[Blu Titan]

Sounds fantastic. I loved the first two and I am looking foward to Voyage of the Dawn Trader.