Does Disney Have an Elemental Problem in Animation?
Once upon a time, Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) putting out a full-length animated feature film was a major event. Ink and paint put Disney on the entertainment map in its formative years, and then there was the animation renaissance that began in 1989 when The Little Mermaid kicked off a string of popular theatrical releases.
Disney's animation studio has had a dry spell lately. It doesn't seem as if the well will be gushing with its next entry. Hope is starting to fade that Pixar's Elemental -- premiering at a multiplex near you this weekend -- will get the House of Mouse back on track. Variety is reporting that the film is targeting just $35 million in domestic box office receipts this weekend, the weakest debut for a Pixar film in the modern era.
Last year was rough for Disney's iconic animation studio. Strange World bombed, but that wasn't a surprise. The real shock was that Lightyear -- the origin story for Toy Story's popular Buzz Lightyear -- also failed to meet initial expectations for ticket sales.
Source Fool.com
