Disney Cashes in on Fox Acquisition at Oscars

by Ray Keating

News/Analysis

DisneyBizJournal.com

January 14, 2020

The Walt Disney Company has cashed in nicely on its Fox acquisition in terms of Oscar nominations.

The battle between Hollywood titans – new and long established – was on display with the announcement of Oscar nominations, as Netflix – the new in Hollywood – garnered 24 nominations, and Disney – the long-established in Hollywood – came in number two with 23 nominations. One gets the feeling that the Netflix-vs.-Disney battle will be playing out in all kinds of ways for years to come, from the number of streaming subscribers to the luring of talent to the number of award nominations and wins. Although innovation and technology offer no guarantees to either Netflix or Disney.

As for Disney’s nominations, key big ones were thanks to Fox. For example, Disney’s two Best Picture nominees were both Fox products – Ford v Ferrari and JoJo Rabbit. (Check out our review of Ford v Ferrari in which we concluded: “Perhaps there will be some nominations at Oscar time that will give this worthy movie an extra boost at the box office.”) Scarlett Johansson also earned one of her two actress nominations for Jojo Rabbit. 

In total, Ford v Ferrari earned four nominations, and Jojo Rabbit came in with six. Toss in a nomination for sound mixing for Ad Astra (see our review of this solid film), and one for original song for Breakthrough, and 12 of the Disney nominations came thanks to Fox.

Among other notables, John Williams’ score for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker received a nomination, and Toy Story 4was nominated for best animated feature (see our review for a different take on Toy Story 4). For good measure, Avengers Endgame, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and The Lion King were all nominated for best visual effects.

Stay tuned. We’ll have more to say on Endgame in the next DisneyBizJournal piece on the Oscars.

The Oscars will be awarded on Sunday evening, February 9^th.

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of The Disney Planner 2020: The TO DO List Solution and the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.

Disney Will Have Seven $1-Billion-Plus 2019 Releases

by Ray Keating

News

DisneyBizJournal.com

December 16, 2019

Over the weekend, Disney’s Frozen 2 topped $1 billion in box office receipts. That makes the sixth Disney release in 2019 to exceed the billion-dollar mark.

According to BoxOfficeMojo.com, Frozen 2 has now raked in $1.03 billion worldwide. The other five billion-dollar babies so far this year for Disney have been:

• Captain Marvel at $1.13 billion

• Aladdin at $1.07 billion

• The Lion King at $1.66 billion

• Avengers: Endgame at $2.8 billion

• Toy Story 4 at $1.07 billion

But, of course, the next billion-dollar earner opens later this week – Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. That, too, will top a billion (perhaps $2 billion?).

Much has been made of Disney fumbling Star Wars. But The Mandalorian on Disney+ and the huge demand for the Disney World ride Rise of the Resistance tell another story. If director J.J. Abrams erases the failure (or at least reduces the sting) of Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi, most negative talk about Star Wars will give way to excitement about what’s next.

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of The Disney Planner 2020: The TO DO List Solution and the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.

Disney Hits Annual Box-Office Record ... in July

by Ray Keating

News

DisneyBizJournal.com

July 29, 2019

Disney hit a box-office record for the entire year, but it’s only July, according to a Hollywood Reporter article.

Keeping in mind that these comparisons are in nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation (my standard economist disclaimer), Disney has pulled in a total of $7.67 billion globally so far this year, according to the Reporter, which surpasses the previous full-year record of $7.61 billion, which also was held by Disney for 2016.

For good measure, Disney’s $5.09 billion internationally ranks as the first time international revenues have moved beyond $5 billion for a studio.

Disney also is on track to break its 2016 record of having four films break the $1 billion mark – with Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, Aladdin and both Toy Story 4 and The Lion King are on track to do so shortly.

And there’s more to come, including Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Frozen II and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, as well as films moved under the Disney umbrella with the Fox merger, such as to be Ad Astra, Terminator: Dark Fate, and Ford v. Ferrari.

One of the interesting questions looking ahead is: Will Disney in future years be able to match what it has accomplished at the box office in 2019? Although, how much will Disney care given its investment in the Disney+ streaming service and the ongoing shift of video entertainment from the theater to the home?

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.

If you enjoyed this article, and since I am the author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories, can I ask you to take at least one (preferably more) of the following steps?

1) The new Pastor Stephen Grant novel – DEEP ROUGH – has arrived! You can order the Kindle edition, the paperback, or the signed book.

2) Please join the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories email list, and get the upcoming short story, THE TRAITOR, for free! Sign up here.

3) Buy one of the other Pastor Stephen Grant novels or short stories at Amazon.comor signed books at www.raykeatingonline.com. 

4) Become a member of the Pastor Stephen Grant Fellowship, and get all kinds of FREE stuff, including each new book in the Pastor Stephen Grant series. Check out the levels and benefits here.

Toy Story 4: Big Bucks, Disappointing Movie

by Ray Keating

Review

DisneyBizJournal.com

June 23, 2019

DisneyBizJournal.com Movie Rating: 3 stars out of 5

DisneyBizJournal.com Box Office Rating:  $$$$ out of $$$$

Okay, I’m getting tired of coming out of a Toy Story movie feeling ... well ... kind of depressed. Toy Story 4 could have easily carried a subtitle like Woody’s Midlife Crisis or Woody’s Angst.

I exited the theater after watching Toy Story and Toy Story 2 feeling uplifted and joyous. That most certainly wasn’t the case with Toy Story 3 or, now, Toy Story 4.

Having said that, while Toy Story 3 was still a good movie, Toy Story 4 ranks as pretty good. Among the big plusses are several enjoyable new characters, namely, Forky (Tony Hale), Ducky (Keegan-Michael Key), Bunny (Jordan Peele), Giggle McDimples (Ally Maki), and perhaps best of all, Duke Caboom (Keanu Reeves).

At the same time, there are just too many problems with the film. For example, it’s so focused on Woody (Tom Hanks) that key characters whom we’ve come to love are relegated to after-thoughts, including Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and Jessie (Joan Cusack), as well as Rex (Wallace Shawn), Hamm (John Ratzenberger), Slinky Dog (Blake Clark), and Potato Head (Don Rickles).

The additions of other toys simply don’t work all that well, especially the story arc involving Gabby Gabby (Christina Hendricks).

And then there’s the return of Bo Peep (Annie Potts). It was good to see one of the gang return to the fold, and her adventurous life added some verve to the movie. But her tale largely amounted to – at least based on the first three films – an anti-Toy-Story story.

In the end, the key problem with Toy Story 4 is Woody’s big choice, which undermines much of the point of the Toy Story franchise, and could be classified as selfish. It was very un-Woody. The scenes mixed in with the credits attempt to gloss over or justify Woody’s decision, but that effort comes up short.

The Box Office

But make no mistake, my take on Toy Story 4 definitely falls into the exception category. The rule is that critics and fans love this. Over at rottentomatoes.com, both critic and audience scores are off the charts – 98% fresh with critics and 95% with audiences.

BoxOfficeMojo.com had the early global box office haul at $167.4 million (as of Friday, June 21), and the movie was expected to pull in between $122 million and $125 million domestically for the entire opening weekend.

Yes, Toy Story 4 will succeed at the box office, but it disappoints when it comes to what Toy Story has long been about. Come on, Woody (or Pixar), you should’ve done better.

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.

If you enjoyed this article, and since I am the author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories, can I ask you to take at least one (preferably more) of the following steps?

1) A new Pastor Stephen Grant novel – DEEP ROUGH – is coming very soon. You can pre-order the Kindle edition, or the signed book.

2) Please join the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories email list, and get the upcoming short story, THE TRAITOR, for free! Sign up here.

3) Buy one of the other Pastor Stephen Grant novels or short stories at Amazon.comor signed books at www.raykeatingonline.com. 

4) Become a member of the Pastor Stephen Grant Fellowship, and get all kinds of FREE stuff, including each new book in the Pastor Stephen Grant series. Check out the levels and benefits here.

How Much Did It Cost to Build Toy Story Land?

by Ray Keating

News/Analysis

DisneyBizJournal.com

June 21, 2019

As an economist, I’m always interested in what kind of investments were made to build structures or to undertake certain ventures. With Toy Story 4 now opening in theaters, it’s an ideal time to take a look at what it cost to build Toy Story Land. As you’ll see in the following video, Rob Plays has some fun in determining what it cost Andy, not Disney, to build Toy Story Land. Enjoy!

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.

If you enjoyed this article, and since I am the author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories, can I ask you to take at least one (preferably more) of the following steps?

1) A new Pastor Stephen Grant novel – DEEP ROUGH – is coming very soon. You can pre-order the Kindle edition, or the signed book.

2) Please join the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories email list, and get the upcoming short story, THE TRAITOR, for free! Sign up here.

3) Buy one of the other Pastor Stephen Grant novels or short stories at Amazon.comor signed books at www.raykeatingonline.com. 

4) Become a member of the Pastor Stephen Grant Fellowship, and get all kinds of FREE stuff, including each new book in the Pastor Stephen Grant series. Check out the levels and benefits here.

Look for “Toy Story 4” To Beat Out “Incredibles 2” and “Frozen”

by Ray Keating

Analysis

DisneyBizJournal.com

June 9, 2019

All of the early buzz on Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story 4 isn’t just positive, but, well, over-the-top positive. Combine that with Disney cranking up the marketing effort between now and the June 21^stopening of the film, and we’re talking a monster box office take.

Many are looking for an opening weekend between $100 million and $150 million. By the way, the current record weekend opening for an animated film is another Disney/Pixar vehicle – Incredibles 2– which earned $182 million in June of last year.

Incredibles 2 wound up pulling in a total of $1.24 billion at the global box office. 

In terms of the Toy Story franchise, the first film, Toy Story, earned $373.6 million in 1995, followed by $497.4 million for Toy Story 2 (1999), and Toy Story 3’s  global box office gross of $1.07 billion in 2009.

Many people questioned why we needed a Toy Story 4. The early quick takes on the movie have told us that, in fact, we did need another entry in the Toy Story franchise. As a result, and given the enormous popularity of Woody, Buzz and their friends, I think we’re looking at a bigger weekend opening for Toy Story 4 than was the case for Incredibles 2, and an eventual box office gross that beats out the current record holder (at least in nominal dollars), Frozen (again, Disney), which took in $1.28 billion.

Look for Woody and Buzz to go out on top – and Disney winding up on top in animation no matter what.

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.

If you enjoyed this article, and since I am the author of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories, can I ask you to take at least one (preferably more) of the following steps?

1) Please join the Pastor Stephen Grant novels and short stories email list, and get the upcoming short story, THE TRAITOR, for free! Sign up here.

2) Buy one of my Pastor Stephen Grant novels or short stories at Amazon.comor signed books at www.raykeatingonline.com. 

3) Become a member of the Pastor Stephen Grant Fellowship, and get all kinds of FREE stuff, including each new book in the Pastor Stephen grant series. Check out the levels and benefits here.