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Walt Disney Pictures, Inc.
Subsidiary
Industry Film
Founded October 16, 1923; 100 years ago (1923-10-16) (as Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio)[1]
April 1, 1983; 40 years ago (1983-04-01) (incorporated as current name)
Founder Walt Disney
Roy O. Disney
Headquarters
  • Walt Disney Studios
  • 500 S. Buena Vista Street
  • Burbank, California, United States
Key people
Sean Bailey (president, production)[2]
Products Motion pictures
Parent Walt Disney Studios
(The Walt Disney Company)
Website waltdisneystudios.com

Walt Disney Pictures, Inc. is an American film production company and a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, owned by The Walt Disney Company. The division is based at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California, and is the main producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios unit. It took on its current name in 1983. Today, in conjunction with the other units of Walt Disney Studios, Walt Disney Pictures is classified as one of Hollywood's "Big Five" film studios.[3][4] Films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios are also released under this brand.

Pirates of the Caribbean is the studio's most successful franchise, with two of its sequels, released in 2006 and 2011, earning over $1 billion in worldwide box office gross.[5]

Background[]

The studio's predecessor (and the modern-day The Walt Disney Company's as a whole) was founded as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, by filmmaker Walt Disney and his business partner and brother, Roy, in 1923.

The creation of Mickey Mouse and subsequent short films and merchandise generated revenue for the studio which was renamed as The Walt Disney Studio at the Hyperion Studio in 1926.[6] In 1929, it was renamed again to Walt Disney Productions. The studio's streak of success continued in the 1930s, culminating with the 1937 release of the first feature-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which becomes a huge financial success.[7] With the profits from Snow White, Walt relocated to a third studio in Burbank, California.[8]

In the 1940s, Disney began experimenting with full-length live-action films, with the introduction of hybrid live action-animated films such as The Reluctant Dragon (1941) and Song of the South (1946).[9] That same decade, the studio began producing nature documentaries with the release of Seal Island (1948), the first of the True-Life Adventures series and a subsequent Academy Award winner for Best Live-Action Short Film.[10][11]

History[]

Walt Disney Productions had its first fully live-action film in 1950 with the release of Treasure Island, considered by Disney to be the official conception for what would eventually evolve into the modern-day Walt Disney Pictures and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.[12] By 1953, the company ended their agreements with such third-party distributors as RKO Radio Pictures and United Artists and formed their own distribution company, Buena Vista Distribution.[13]

The division was incorporated as Walt Disney Pictures on April 1, 1983 to diversify film subjects and expand audiences for their film releases.[14] In April 1983, Richard Berger was hired by Disney CEO Ron W. Miller as film president. Touchstone Films was started by Miller in February 1984 as a label for their PG-rated films with an expected half of Disney's yearly 6-to-8-movie slate, which would be released under the label.[15] Berger was pushed out as a new CEO was appointed for Walt Disney Productions later in 1984, as Michael Eisner brought his own film chief, Jeffrey Katzenberg.[16] Touchstone and Hollywood Pictures were formed within that unit on February 15, 1984 and February 1, 1989 respectively.[17]

The Touchstone Films banner was used by then new Disney CEO Michael Eisner in the 1984–85 television season with the short lived western, Wildside. In the next season, Touchstone produced a hit in The Golden Girls.[18]

David Hoberman was promoted to president of production at Walt Disney Pictures in April 1988.[19] In April 1994, Hoberman was promoted to president of motion pictures at Walt Disney Studios and was replaced as Disney president by David Vogel.[20] Vogel added the position of Hollywood Pictures in 1997, then was promoted in 1998 to head up all live action motion picture units as president of Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group.[21]

After two movies-based-on-ride by other Disney units,[22][23][24] Walt Disney Pictures selected it as a source of a line of films[25] starting with The Country Bears in 2002 and two in 2003, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and The Haunted Mansion. Pirates of the Caribbean launched a film series and made the ride into a franchise.[22] After four Pirates sequels, the franchise took in more than $5.4 billion worldwide.[26] So, the corporation was looking for addition of the ride adaptations.[5]

Walt Disney Pictures has pioneered the live-action remakes of animated films created by Walt Disney Animation Studios,[27] with a live-action adaptation of One Hundred and One Dalmatians released in 1996.[28] In 2010, Disney released Alice in Wonderland, an adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass that became the second $1 billion-grossing film in the studio's history. The film began a trend of live-action fantasy genre films being green-lit. Concurrently, Disney was not having stable commercial success with PG-13 tentpole films outside of the Pirates of the Caribbean series, with films such as John Carter (2012) and The Lone Ranger (2013) becoming major box office bombs. With sister units Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm successfully targeting the male market, the studio saw this as its niche. With the success of Maleficent (2014) and Cinderella (2015), the studio announced a whole series of live-action adaptations of animated films as being in early stages.[28] The Jungle Book (2016) cemented this trend with a global near billion-dollar box office.[2] Some adaptations are sequels to existing adaptations, origin stories and prequels. Disney had announced development of 18 of these films by July 2016.[28] Disney identified this line as Disney Fairy Tale in its enlarged slate announcement on October 8, 2015 with four scheduled without titles attached.[29]

Walt Disney Pictures took another push at additional adaptations in the 2010s. Another Haunted Mansion film was in the works with Guillermo del Toro as of August 2012.[25] Mr. Toad's Wild Ride ride film in the works at Disney Pictures by January 2013.[30] Tomorrowland, first to be loosely based on a theme park area,[31] was announced in January 2013 for a December 2014 release.[25] It's A Small World was added to the list of known projects in April 2014.[32] Tower of Terror was being given a theatrical treatment by John August under producer Jim Whitaker in October 2015, while the long under development Jungle Cruise gained an actor.[33]

[]

Until 1985, instead of a traditional production logo, the opening credits of Disney films used to feature a title card that read "Walt Disney Presents", and later, "Walt Disney Productions Presents". In Never Cry Wolf, and the pre-release versions of Splash, it showed a light blue rectangle with the name "Walt Disney Pictures" and featured a white outline rectangle framing on a black screen.

Beginning with the release of The Black Cauldron in 1985, Walt Disney Pictures introduced its fantasy castle logo.[34] The logo was created by Walt Disney Feature Animation in traditional animation and featured a white Sleeping Beauty Castle design against a blue background, with the studio's name and underscored by "When You Wish Upon A Star".[35] A short rendition of the logo was used as a closing logo as well as the movie Return to Oz, although the film was months before The Black Cauldron was released. Beginning with Dinosaur (2000), an alternative logo featuring an orange castle and logo against a black background, was occasionally presented with darker tone and live-action films.

In 2006, the logo was updated with the release of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest at the behest of then-Walt Disney Studios chairman Dick Cook and studio marketing president Oren Aviv.[35] Designed by Disney animation director Mike Gabriel and producer Baker Bloodworth, the modernized logo was created completely in computer animation by Weta Digital and featured a redesigned 3D Waltograph typography. The final rendering of the logo was done by Cameron Smith and Cyrese Parrish.[36] In addition, the revamped logo includes visual references to Pinocchio, Mary Poppins, Peter Pan, and Cinderella, and its redesigned castle incorporates elements from both Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella Castle, as well as Walt Disney's family crest. Mark Mancina wrote a new composition and arrangement of "When You Wish upon a Star" to accompany the 2006 logo.[35] Beginning with the release of The Muppets in 2011, the sequence was modified to truncate the "Walt Disney Pictures" branding to "Disney".[37]

Filmography[]

The studio's first live-action film was Treasure Island (1950). Animated films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar are also released by Walt Disney Pictures. The studio has released four films that have received an Academy Award for Best Picture nomination: Mary Poppins (1964), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Up (2009), and Toy Story 3 (2010).[38]

Highest-grossing films[]

Walt Disney Pictures has produced four films that have grossed over $1 billion at the worldwide box office: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), Alice in Wonderland (2010), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011), and Beauty and the Beast (2017);[2] and has released four animated films that have reached that milestone: Toy Story 3 (2010), Frozen (2013), Zootopia, and Finding Dory (both 2016).

Highest-grossing films in North America[39]
Rank Title Year Box office gross
1 Beauty and the Beast 2017 $504,014,165
2 Finding Dory 2016 $486,131,416
3 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest 2006 $423,315,812
4 The Lion King 1994 $422,783,777
5 Toy Story 3 2010 $415,004,880
6 Frozen 2013 $400,738,009
7 Finding Nemo 2003 $380,843,261
8 The Jungle Book 2016 $364,001,123
9 Inside Out 2015 $356,002,827
10 Zootopia 2016 $341,268,248
11 Alice in Wonderland 2010 $334,191,110
12 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End 2007 $309,420,425
13 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl 2003 $305,413,918
14 Up 2009 $293,004,164
15 The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 2005 $291,710,957
16 Monsters, Inc. 2001 $289,916,256
17 Toy Story 2 1999 $276,554,625
18 Monsters University 2013 $268,492,764
19 The Incredibles 2004 $261,441,092
20 Moana 2016 $247,650,255
21 Cars 2006 $244,082,982
22 Maleficent 2014 $241,410,378
23 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides 2011 $241,071,802
24 Brave 2012 $237,283,207
25 Oz the Great and Powerful 2013 $234,911,825
Highest-grossing films worldwide
Rank Title Year Box office gross
1 Frozen 2013 $1,279,852,693
2 Beauty and the Beast 2017 $1,263,521,126
3 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest 2006 $1,066,179,725
4 Toy Story 3 2010 $1,063,171,911
5 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides 2011 $1,045,713,802
6 Finding Dory 2016 $1,025,473,532
7 Alice in Wonderland 2010 $1,025,467,110
8 Zootopia 2016 $1,023,641,447
9 The Lion King 1994 $968,483,777
10 The Jungle Book 2016 $964,062,422
11 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End 2007 $963,420,425
12 Finding Nemo 2003 $940,335,536
13 Inside Out 2015 $851,175,046
14 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales 2017 $791,726,541
15 Maleficent 2014 $758,410,378
16 The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 2005 $745,013,115
17 Monsters University 2013 $744,229,437
18 Up 2009 $735,099,082
19 Big Hero 6 2014 $657,827,828
20 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl 2003 $654,264,015
21 Moana 2016 $643,034,466
22 The Incredibles 2004 $633,019,734
23 Coco 2017 $592,794,936
24 Tangled 2010 $591,794,936
25 Cars 2 2011 $577,110,557

—Includes theatrical reissue(s).

See also[]

  • Walt Disney Studios (division)
  • Walt Disney Television
  1. "The Walt Disney Studios". Archived from the original on November 5, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151105202212/https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/disney-companies/studio-entertainment. Retrieved July 7, 2013.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Sean Bailey On How Disney’s Live-Action Division Found Its ‘Beauty And The Beast’ Mojo", Deadline, Penske Business Media, LLC, March 21, 2017. Retrieved on March 23, 2017. 
  3. Schatz, Tom. The Studio System and Conglomerate Hollywood (PDF). Blackwell Publishing. Disney also exploited new technologies and delivery systems, creating synergies that were altogether unique among the studios, and that finally enabled the perpetual “mini-major” to ascend to major studio status. 
  4. Finler (2003), The Hollywood Story pp. 324–25.
  5. 5.0 5.1 "Sean Bailey On How Disney’s Live-Action Division Found Its ‘Beauty And The Beast’ Mojo", Deadline, Penske Business Media, LLC, March 21, 2017. Retrieved on March 23, 2017. 
  6. "Chronology of the Walt Disney Company (1926)". kpolsson.com. http://kpolsson.com/disnehis/disn1926.htm.
  7. Gabler, Neal (2007). Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination. New York: Random House. pp. 276–277. ISBN 0-679-75747-3. 
  8. Schroeder, Russel (1996). Walt Disney: His Life in Pictures. New York: Disney Press. 
  9. "The Walt Disney Company History". Company Profiles. fundinguniverse.com. http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/the-walt-disney-company-history/. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
  10. "The Best of Walt Disney's True-Life Adventures (1975)". New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/123954/The-Best-of-Walt-Disney-s-True-Life-Adventures/overview. Retrieved March 18, 2015.
  11. "New York Times: Seal Island". NY Times. https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/141404/Seal-Island/details. Retrieved 2008-05-18.
  12. "The Walt Disney Studios". The Walt Disney Company. http://thewaltdisneycompany.com:80/disney-companies/studio-entertainment. Retrieved June 4, 2014.
  13. Fixmer, Fixmer. "Disney to Drop Buena Vista Brand Name, People Say (Update1)", Bloomberg, Bloomberg L.P., April 25, 2007. Retrieved on 28 November 2012. 
  14. "Business Entity Detail: Walt Disney Pictures (search on Entity Number: C1138747)". California Secretary of State. https://businesssearch.sos.ca.gov/. Retrieved March 18, 2015.
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  21. "David Vogel to Exit From Post as President of Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group" (Press release). Disney Studios. May 3, 1999. https://www.thefreelibrary.com/David+Vogel+to+Exit+From+Post+as+President+of+Buena+Vista+Motion...-a054535549.
  22. 22.0 22.1 "Theme park ride-based movies: Will 'Small World' follow the trend?", Entertainment Weekly, April 23, 2014. Retrieved on March 28, 2017. 
  23. "Disney Sets ABC Pix", Variety, May 1, 1997. Retrieved on December 30, 2015. 
  24. "Mission to Mars", Entertainment Weekly, March 17, 2000. Retrieved on March 28, 2017. 
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  26. "End of an Era: Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer Part Ways", Variety, September 19, 2013. Retrieved on March 28, 2017. 
  27. "Disney Buys Live-Action Prince Charming Project", The Hollywood Reporter, July 6, 2015. Retrieved on March 20, 2017. (in en) “Disney pioneered the recent and lucrative trend of taking either old animated classics or fairy tales and spinning them into live-action features.” 
  28. 28.0 28.1 28.2 "Disney is planning 18 live-action remakes of its classic animated movies — here they all are", Business Insider, July 19, 2016. Retrieved on March 20, 2017. (in en) 
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  30. Tully, Sarah. "Is 'Tomorrowland' movie tied to Disneyland area?", January 28, 2013. Retrieved on January 29, 2013. 
  31. Kirshenblat, Eliana. "Disney’s New Tower of Terror Movie Seeking a Writer", Screenrant.com, 2015-10-23. Retrieved on 2017-03-29. 
  32. Fleming, Mike (April 22, 2014). "Disney To Make 'It's A Small World' Movie: Jon Turteltaub To Direct". Deadline.com. http://www.deadline.com/2014/04/disney-taps-jon-turteltaub-to-direct-its-a-small-world-feature-film/. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
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