Disney's film division, experiencing one of its worst slumps at the box office in years, is counting on talking dogs and singing teens to turn things around.
When Walt Disney Co. reported earnings last week, the glaring weak spot in an otherwise strong quarter was the company's Studio Entertainment unit, which encompasses the movie studio. Operating income plunged 49% and revenue was off 19% from a year ago, mostly because Disney's pictures didn't meet expectations.
With its newest release, the political comedy "Swing Vote," buried in a landslide last weekend and U.S. ticket sales down nearly 30% this year, Disney finds itself in last place among the six major studios in box-office market share -- unusual for a company usually at or near the top.
Disney is betting that won't last long, however. It has high hopes this fall for "Beverly Hills Chihuahua," about a pampered pooch from the 90210 ZIP Code lost in Mexico, and "Bolt," an animated film about a showbiz dog. That project is being shepherded by Pixar Animation Studios guru John Lasseter. Disney is also releasing "High School Musical 3: Senior Year," the third movie in the pubescent franchise and the first premiering on the big screen.
The studio said one reason for its weaker performance in the third quarter was that results in the year-ago quarter were extraordinarily high, pumped up by the blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," which generated $961 million in worldwide ticket sales.
In addition, Disney made a strategic decision a couple of years ago to release fewer movies annually, which potentially reduces its box-office total.
Still, other than the current Pixar comedy, "Wall-E," which has grossed more than $200 million in the U.S., Disney hasn't hit one out of the park in seven months. Its biggest live-action bet, "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," the second film in the franchise co-owned by Philip Anschutz's Walden Media, fell below expectations at $140 million domestically. That's less than half what its 2005 predecessor, "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," brought in and less than half the U.S. total that "Pirates" achieved.
The studio made some money on modest-budget pictures such as "College Road Trip" and "Step Up 2: The Streets," and its Miley Cyrus "Hannah Montana" concert movie beat expectations. But those films' grosses paled next to those collected last year by the comedy "Wild Hogs," the action sequel "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" and "Enchanted."
