January HJ Feature

The January Hollywood Jesus Narnia Feature Article has been posted: "Blockbusted? Ask William Moseley's Fans." It's a look at the puzzling paradox of the enormous, yet coporately dissapointing, boxoffice take of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe—and at the wild success the film seems to be with girls between 8 and 16.

Here's a snip:

Given that another $200+ million would be necessary to produce and market the proposed Prince Caspian, this would consume the lion’s share of the boxoffice profits from the first film—leaving merchandising rights and video sales as the only real source of profit for the film’s producers.

Ultimately, that’s got to be pretty disappointing to Disney, considering the boxoffice potential for Andrew Adamson’s third directorial feature. Profit margins on both Shrek and Shrek 2 were much higher. Lion King-type figures are not in the cards.

Does that mean Prince Caspian is dead?

Not at all. Even before The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe debuted, the studios were talking to Adamson and his child stars about returning for Prince Caspian, and in the last couple of weeks rumors—but rumors only—have surfaced that deals have now in fact been inked, and the project greenlighted.

These rumors are likely true.

Disney, we must remember, is not at the helm of this franchise. Walden Media is... Adamson delivered a film that educators, pastors, librarians and booksellers love. It’s turned a profit, and has spawned additional millions in book sales.

What’s more, it has captured the fancy of schoolgirls, thanks to the performance of William Mosely as Peter Pevensie.

By far, the most vocal response to this film that Hollywood Jesus has received has come from girls aged eight to sixteen. The last time I saw anything like this was in 2003, with the release of another Walden Media film: Holes...

To read the full story, click on the link above.