In a move that has many movie goers scratching their head, Paramount has decided to drop the animated film ‘The Little Prince’ from their list of releases a week before the film was set to drop in theaters.
While Paramount has not released anything official and is keeping mum at the moment about the reasons, the move was confirmed by the film’s director, Mark Osborne (‘Kung Fu Panda,’ ‘Spongebob Squarepants’) via Twitter:
1/3 Many thanks to everyone for the outpouring of love and support in these strange times.
— Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016
2/3 – As it turns out, the much anticipated U.S. release of this special and unique film will have to be anticipated just a little bit more. — Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016
All is not lost, however, as Osbourne, does assure fans that the film will be released later this year by another distributor:
3/3 – All I can say is #thelittleprince will in fact be released by another distributor later this year.
— Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016
At least if you really want to see ‘The Little Prince,’ you can always grab your passport and head to Canada:
4/4 – Until then, head to Canada! The film opens there in wide release this weekend! — Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016
Based on the 1943 classic children’s book of the same name by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, ‘The Little Prince’ tells the story of an aviator who crash lands in the Sahara Desert. While fixing his plane, a young prince approaches who tells him he has fallen to Earth from his tiny asteroid and converses with the aviator about his musings and the people he has met. The story itself is both simplistic and philosophical in its narrative.
Paramount’s dropping of the film is very surprising considering it has already earned roughly $80million overseas since debuting at Cannes last year and was already tracking to do very well in the US with a rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. Combining 3D computer and stop motion animation techniques, ‘The Little Prince’ boasts the voices of some very talented actors including Jeff Bridges, Rachel McAdams, Pual Rudd, Marion Cotillard, James Franco, Ricky Gervais, Paul Giamantti, and Benicio Del Toro.
Wonder what the weather is like in Canada this time of year?