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Disney has proverbially left the folks behind the "Narnia" films naked in the woods, holding their kibbles n' bits.
So what happened here? Someone slept with someone's wife or daughter? A fulfillment of a blood oath of vengeance? Well, probably not. However, while Disney declined to give an official reason for their withdrawal, the writing may already be on the wall in terms of the financial motives. The fact is, the franchise was dealt a bit of a blow when Prince Caspian was released last May. While 2005's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was a tremendous success at $292 million domestic and $453 million internationally, the aforementioned 2008 follow-up performed significantly less at $141 million domestic and $278 million international.
So one must be left wondering, "So what? It still made tons of money." Indeed it did, however the speculation going around, is that the fantasy genre that came full speed ahead thanks to Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, may be on a decline in terms of interest and bankability. Perhaps Disney saw the disparity between the takes of the two Narnia films and came to the conclusion that participation in the third one was not worth breaking out the checkbook.
It is also believed that the decision to move the release date of Caspian from last December to May of this year was a horrible mistake. In 2005, the first film hit on a comfortable December 9 release date, making it an easy holdover pick in the weeks between the releases of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and King Kong. Also, the winter and Holiday atmosphere complimented the general theme and snowy look of the film itself. While there is also the fact that the film struck when the iron was hot in the fantasy genre, Christmas is a time when people are more apt towards light-hearted fantasy with a classical feel. Caspian instead, was moved to May as an ill-conceived attempt to capitalize on the early summer movie season. It faced a rough landscape, barely dethroning the top spot from a month-old Iron Man, and was diluted from huge summer marketing hype from better films.
While the fate of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader remains in the air, it seems likely among speculators that Fox will pick up the financing slack, as they already have a working relationship with producer Walden Media.
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