Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion... - Page 9

Steve_Tk · 08-15-2008, 09:14 AM

WB must believe in voodoo if they think the release date is all you need for guaranteed success.

TravisR · 08-15-2008, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve_Tk

WB must believe in voodoo if they think the release date is all you need for guaranteed success.

Yeah. It's not like Harry Potter is coming out in a real tough slot (like May), it's coming out in November and is/was the big gun. Opening in July isn't going to help or hurt it. It's just an opportunity for them to sell more DVDs during the holidays.

Malcolm R · 08-15-2008, 12:53 PM

As I noted in the BO thread, it may be a studio finance decision as well to even out the finances across fiscal years. If WB counted both TDK and HP against the current year, then had nothing big in '09, it would look very lopsided from an accounting/investor viewpoint.

todd s · 08-15-2008, 12:57 PM

Well that just blows! I was really looking forward to it. Now to have to wait an extra 8 months. Its Star Trek all over again.

My daughter heard an interview with Newell saying it had to due with the possibility of an actors strike.

Shaun · 08-15-2008, 02:02 PM

I'm betting Disney is wishing that they had pushed Prince Caspian to November now that HP is out of the way. Considering it's somewhat average box office take when it was released this last May in the middle of a very crowded month (with Indiana Jones, Iron Man, etc.), they're probably kicking themselves right now. Maybe it would have done better in the fall/holiday season similar to Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe back in '05.

Josh Steinberg · 08-15-2008, 02:24 PM

With how long it took for any sort of trailer to come out, and the fact that there wasn't one attached to TDK, I had been half anticipating that there might be some kind of delay. (I mean... TDK had a teaser a year beforehand, which is obviously an extreme. But the 007 sequel had a trailer come out in either late June or early July, and that's opening around the same time HP6 was scheduled. The absence of a trailer was very noticeable to me. Of course, then they put it out, make it look wicked cool, and push back the movie...grr...)

I'm sure they're not lying about the business end of it but I wouldn't be surprised if there was more to the story -- despite their claims to the contrary, maybe the movie did still need a little work and they knew it was going to come down to the wire, so when the opportunity to delay it presented itself, they jumped. Just my guess.

Kevin Grey · 08-15-2008, 03:36 PM

Heh, Harry Potter is on the cover of this week's Entertainment Weekly as part of their Fall Movie Preview.

Tim Glover · 08-16-2008, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Josh Steinberg

With how long it took for any sort of trailer to come out, and the fact that there wasn't one attached to TDK, I had been half anticipating that there might be some kind of delay. (I mean... TDK had a teaser a year beforehand, which is obviously an extreme. But the 007 sequel had a trailer come out in either late June or early July, and that's opening around the same time HP6 was scheduled. The absence of a trailer was very noticeable to me. Of course, then they put it out, make it look wicked cool, and push back the movie...grr...)

I'm sure they're not lying about the business end of it but I wouldn't be surprised if there was more to the story -- despite their claims to the contrary, maybe the movie did still need a little work and they knew it was going to come down to the wire, so when the opportunity to delay it presented itself, they jumped. Just my guess.

Well said Josh.

Ray Chuang · 08-16-2008, 02:51 PM

One thing Time Warner may have to seriously consider is that given director David Yates wants to film both parts of Deathly Hallows simultaneously, that could mean by the time of the July 17, 2009 release the cast and crew will be heavily tied up in production of the two movies, and that could mean the three big stars of the movie series--Dan Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson--will be unable to attend any premiere showings of the Half-Blood Prince. This means these three stars will only be available via satellite link from the production sets used to film Deathly Hallows.

Tim Glover · 08-16-2008, 03:48 PM

On the plus side, it just gives us more time to anticipate...which sometimes results in higher expectations.

Adam_S · 08-16-2008, 10:26 PM

given enough planning time they can build a two week hiatus for HBP press into the shooting schedule. It could actually be something that works for the film, if their UPM is on top of things.