Guardians' subsidies worth U$20m
According to the US network ABC, Animal Logic’s animated feature Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole had a production budget of U$100m, “before Australian subsidies brought the tab down to $80 million”.
The film opened at number two of the US box office with an estimated U$16,335,000 (average U$4,569), according to Box Office Mojo.
The film, directed by Zack Snyder, opened behind Oliver Stone’s Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, with U$19m. It was financed by Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures.
ABC News reported Dan Fellman, president of US domestic distribution at Warner, had hoped for a U$18-20m opening, but was “heartened” by good exit polls and an A-minus rating from an audience survey which indicated positive word-of-mouth which could help Guardians have a long life at the box office.
“If it had lousy exits and a B-minus, I wouldn’t feel the same way,” said Fellman.
The film currently has a 50 percent ‘fresh’ average at the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.
In Australia, Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole opens today in Victoria and Queensland, and this Thursday in all other states.
