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Tag Archives: James Franco
Oz The Great and Powerful Comes to Bluray/DVD this June
On June 11th, return to the spectacular land of Oz with Disney’s OZ THE GREAT AND POWERFUL on Blu-ray Combo Pack! This epic adventure comes to life with vibrant picture and sound and includes an impressive variety of never-before-seen bonus material including “The Magic of ‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ Second Screen Feature,” James Franco’s personal story of his journey to the land of Oz produced and directed by Franco himself, Mila Kunis’ makeup metamorphosis and much more!
Disney’s “Oz The Great and Powerful” will once again provide audiences with a magical entertainment experience when it debuts for in-home release on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, DVD, Digital and On-Demand, June 11, 2013.
Oz the Great and Powerful tops box office with $80M debut
Oz: The Great and Powerful, Walt Disney Co.’s prequel to the 1939 classic “The Wizard of Oz,” scored more than $80 million in its debut weekend in U.S. theaters and $150 million world-wide, box-office watchers said Sunday.
After a $24 million opening day on Friday, “Oz” is expected to rake in another $56 million for Saturday and Sunday when all the final numbers come in Monday. The $80 million estimate was reported by Paul Dergarabedian, president of Hollywood.com’s box-office division.
“Oz” follows a long line of largely futile attempts to capitalize on what many consider the consummate children’s tale. Disney (US:DIS) itself released a now-obscure title “Return to Oz” in 1985 that gained little traction at the box office.
But this latest release is directed by Sam Raimi, who helmed th blockbuster “Spider-Man” film series, and features three actresses at or near the height of their popularity: Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis and Rachel Weisz.
“Oz’s” weekend opening is the third-best March debut in the U.S., behind only last year’s “The Hunger Games,” which brought in $152.5 million domestically, and 2010’s “Alice In Wonderland.” The latter, also a Disney product, made $116.1 million its first weekend, Dergarabedian reported. “Oz” is the first film of the year to clear $35 million in its debut this year.
“This is going to be the first big hit of the year,” Dergarabedian said. “We desperately need it.”
“Oz” opened in 3,912 theaters throughout North America, making an average of $20,521 per theater, he said.
Disney Begins Work on ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ Sequel
Disney is feeling pretty good about their new film, ‘Oz the Great and Powerful‘, a prequel to the 1939 film ‘The Wizard of Oz’, all of which are based on the books by L. Frank Baum. The new film, starring James Franco as the man who becomes the Great Wizard known as Oz, and directed by Sam Raimi, is already looking to make in the ballpark of $80 million its opening weekend, Disney feels safe enough to begin prep work on a possible sequel. While not much is known about what exactly the sequel will entail, or what novel in the series it might be based on, we do know that Mitchell Kapner, who helped co-write the first film with David Lindsay-Abaire, will take writing duties on the new film. For those who have seen the film, they know there are actually quite a few different routes you could go with a sequel, so it’s definitely going to be exciting to see just where they’re going to do with it.
One thing I’m very curious about is to see if Sam Raimi will be returning to helm another adventure in the land of Oz. I personally thought that Sam Raimi brought a really awesome touch to Oz, and you could tell he was definitely having fun in the world. It seemed to really mesh with his artistic style, so I’m really hoping he’ll return for a second go-around. Are you excited by the possibilites of another ‘Oz’ film? Let me know in the comments below, only here at Chip and Company!
Related articles
- ‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ Review (chipandco.com)
- Mayor of Seattle Proclaims ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ Day (chipandco.com)
- ‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ Press Junket – Part 2 (chipandco.com)
- ‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ Press Junket – Part 1 (chipandco.com)
‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ Review
The world of Oz is about as synonymous with fantasy as Middle Earth, Hogwarts, and Narnia. Created by L. Frank Baum, it’s a place full of magic, whimsy, darkness, and wonder, everything that you need to make a compelling world to draw people in. Over the years, we’ve had many attempts at bringing the world of Oz to life on film, most notably in the 1939 classic, ‘The Wizard of Oz’, starring Judy Garland. But Oz has had a level of difficulty since then on screen, with many of the other tries at bringing the land to life flailing and never taking off. But in Hollywood, it’s not usual that we see things lay dormant too long, so it was only a matter of time until we saw Oz again.
Now it’s Disney’s turn to take a swing at the wonderfully whimsical world, bringing us a prequel story about how the wonderful Wizard known as Oz became the man we see in ‘The Wizard of Oz’, and daring to make a film that’ll leave a lasting effect on audiences of as the Judy Garland classic.
‘Oz The Great and Powerful‘ follows the story of Oscar Diggs (James Franco), who goes by Oz, who is a traveling carnival magician whose life revolves around the art of illusion, always trying to be a step ahead of everyone else, and pulling a veil over their eyes, be it the audiences who come to see his show, or the people in his personal life. But when Oz gets trapped in a tornado, he wakes up to find himself transported to a world that couldn’t be more different from where he came from. He’s found by a young woman named Theodora (Mila Kunis), who’s father was the King of Oz. When she learns the man’s name is Oz, she tells him of a prophecy of a man who was to fall from the sky, with the name of their land, who would save everyone from the Wicked Witch. Oz doesn’t necessarily believe this to be true, he goes along with the charade that he is indeed that man.. Aided by a flying monkey named Finley (voiced by Zach Braff), and a small China Girl (voiced by Joey King), Oz embarks on an adventure that not only will change who he is, but also the land of Oz, forever.
‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ Press Junket – Part 2
On February 17, 2013, I had the privilege of attending the press junket for ‘Oz The Great and Powerful’ at the Langham Hotel in Pasadena, CA. Hosted by Walt Disney Studios, we were given a chance to talk to the cast, director, and producer of the new film that returns us to the magical land of Oz, and get to ask them questions about the film’s production, hear stories from the set, and so much more. The junket consisted of two different panels, so I felt that the best way to talk about the event was to separate our coverage of the event into two separate posts, to give you the most in depth look at it. The second part will cover the panel with director Sam Raimi, actor Zach Braff, and actresses Rachel Weisz and Michelle Williams.
In case you missed the first part you can read it here!
