Bee Movie, which was released Nov. 2, was a box office disappointment, even though it took in $126.6 million in the U.S. and $285.2 million worldwide.
Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg said box- office for “Bee” did not cover the costs of distributing and promoting it, but the movie was expected to become profitable after its release on DVD on March 11.
It’s unclear whther “Bee” would be released in HD DVD, since Toshiba announced last week it would stop supporting the format, which lost out to Sony’s Blu-ray standard among major studios and retailers.
DreamWorks Animation has pushed back the release of its second 3D animation film “How to Train Your Dragon” by 4 months to March 26, 2010, to avoid competing in international markets for 3D screens with the performance-capture animation movie “Avatar” by James Cameron.
Going forward, Katzenberg said 2008 earnings will be driven by “Kung Fu Panda,” an animated comedy starring Jack Black set for June 6.
It will be followed on November 7 by the sequel, “Madagascar: The Crate Escape,” and the company’s first 3D film, “Monsters vs. Aliens,” to be released in March 2009.
