Hollywood may finally have found a successful way back to Oz.
Walt Disney Co. (DIS)’s “Oz the Great and Powerful,” opening in theaters today, marks the latest attempt to reimagine the classic story from L. Frank Baum, seven decades and two flops after the 1939 classic. Projections have risen on positive social-media buzz, with Boxoffice.com increasing its estimate for U.S. weekend tickets sales by 17 percent to $75 million.
“Oz” is also the biggest bet yet on Hollywood’s strategy du jour -- mining famous tales to create new stories with modern special effects and humor. Studios have released more than a dozen such films in the past three years, with Disney’s 2010 “Alice in Wonderland” the most successful. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert Iger is leaning on characters known to fans worldwide through books, movies or comics to generate higher profit from his volatile film division.
Walt Disney Co. (DIS)’s “Oz the Great and Powerful,” opening in theaters today, marks the latest attempt to reimagine the classic story from L. Frank Baum, seven decades and two flops after the 1939 classic. Projections have risen on positive social-media buzz, with Boxoffice.com increasing its estimate for U.S. weekend tickets sales by 17 percent to $75 million.
“Oz” is also the biggest bet yet on Hollywood’s strategy du jour -- mining famous tales to create new stories with modern special effects and humor. Studios have released more than a dozen such films in the past three years, with Disney’s 2010 “Alice in Wonderland” the most successful. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert Iger is leaning on characters known to fans worldwide through books, movies or comics to generate higher profit from his volatile film division.