That's when Robert Halmi Sr., president of Hallmark Entertainment, came knocking. So why pay for something that you already own? Or so the attorneys argued.Īs it turned out, "Dinosaur" was barely able to cover its $135 million production costs during its theatrical run in late 2000 and early 2001.īy early this year, Disney TV executives at ratings-troubled ABC were beginning to realize that they had seriously overexposed their once hit series "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" They knew they needed something really special to lure viewers back during this month's crucial "sweeps" rating period. Besides, Walt Disney Pictures already had its own dino-related film, "Dinosaur," in the works. Not to mention the likelihood of several hit sequels.īut, Disney's lawyers felt that Gurney's representatives were asking way too much for the rights to use the "Dinotopia" characters in both a theatrical and a theme-park setting. Its executives recognized that the "Dinotopia" property was a virtual gold mine - that, even with the high cost of making the first movie, millions more could be made from the merchandising of toys and from theme-park attractions based on Gurney's dinosaurs. But Sony got cold feet when it realized that the initial film would cost at least $150 million, twice as much as it wanted to spend.
Sony even had hired noted special-effects wizard Ken Ralston, best known for his Academy Award-winning work on the "Star Wars" films, to lead its team. At the time, Sony Pictures Imageworks had been laboring for about a year to turn the author's 1992 Hugo Award winner, "Dinotopia: A Land Apart From Time," and his 1995 best selling follow-up, "Dinotopia: The World Beneath," into a viable motion-picture franchise. Back in 1997, Disney had the opportunity to acquire the entire package of TV, movie and theme-park rights to James Gurney's best-selling "Dinotopia" books. Perhaps even sorrier is the saga of Disney's history with "Dinotopia," the "mega-series" that aired earlier this week on its ABC network. On the TV side, Disney helped develop but eventually backed away from - due to a lack of nerve - CBS's hit series "C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation" as well as Comedy Central's wildly successful raunchfest "The Man Show."
Likewise, Disney passed over Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring." To date, it has earned more than $300 million for New Line Pictures, and the tote board is still running. The film grossed $182 million during its 2000-2001 run.
Among the successful films that the Mouse said "no" to was Mel Gibson's romantic comedy "What Women Want." After Disney declined, Paramount Pictures quickly snapped up the project.
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