The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, 2005
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a 2005 film based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published novel in C.S. Lewis' children's fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. It was produced by Walden Media and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Four British children are evacuated during the Blitz to the countryside, and find a wardrobe that leads to the fantasy world of Narnia, where they ally with the Lion Aslan against the forces of the White Witch.
New Zealand born Andrew Adamson made his live-action directorial debut with the film. It was released on December 9, 2005 in both Europe and North America to positive reviews and was highly successful at the box office. It won the 2005 Academy Award for Best Make Up and various other awards, and is the first of what will be a series of films based on the books. An Extended Edition was released on December 12, 2006 and was only made available on DVD until January 31, 2007. It was the best selling DVD in North America in 2006.
On December 7, 2005 the film premiered in London, going on general release the following day. The film was released December 8, 2005 in the United Kingdom and December 9, 2005 in North America and the rest of Europe.
Narnia opened with $23 million USD in 3,616 theatres on its opening day (December 9, 2005), averaging $6,363 per location. The film took in a total of $65.5 million on its opening weekend (December 9–11, 2005), the 24th best opening weekend of all time, as well as the second biggest December opening, behind The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
The United States total was $291.7 million making it the second highest grossing film of 2005 behind Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and surpassing the gross of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Source: Boxofficemojo). The worldwide total was $744.7 million as of July 30, 2006. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was the highest-grossing live action film and the third highest-grossing film overall in Disney company history before being passed in 2006 by Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End in 2007.Wikipedia
