Free Willy (franchise)
| Free Willy | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Keith A. Walker |
| Original work | Free Willy |
| Owner | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Years | 1993–1997, 2010 |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) |
|
| Animated series | Free Willy (1994–95) |
| Direct-to-video | Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove (2010) |
| Audio | |
| Soundtrack(s) |
|
Free Willy is a media franchise from Warner Bros that started with the 1993 film Free Willy that went on to become a sleeper hit at the box office. The original series primarily follows an orphan named Jesse who befriends a killer whale named Willy and eventually develops a strong connection. While trying to juggle his newly found life, he and Willy are challenged with overcoming or defeating various hazards to the ocean or Willy himself including corporate greed, hunters, poachers and oil disasters.
Following the success of Free Willy, it was followed by an animated series, two sequels and a direct-to-video reboot.
Films[]
| Film | U.S. release date | Director(s) | Screenwriter(s) | Story by | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Willy | June 11, 1993 | Simon Wincer | Keith A. Walker & Corey Blechman | Keith A. Walker | Lauren Shuler Donner and Jennie Lew Tugend |
| Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | July 19, 1995 | Dwight Little | Karen Janszen, Corey Blechman and John Mattson | ||
| Free Willy 3: The Rescue | August 7, 1997 | Sam Pillsbury | John Mattson | Jennie Lew Tugend | |
| Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove | March 23, 2010 | Will Geiger | Cindy McCreery | David Wicht, John Stainton, Laura Lodin | |
Free Willy (1993)[]
A delinquent orphan named Jesse was forced to clean up graffiti at the Northwest Adventure Park as part of his probation while staying with new foster parents. There, he becomes attached to a captive killer whale, the film's eponymous "Willy", until he discovers a secret from the park's greedy owner that threatens their friendship.
Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)[]
Two years after setting Willy free, Jesse reunites with Willy during a camping trip in the San Juan Islands with the Greenwoods and a newly-discovered half-brother named Elvis as the teenager tries to help Willy and his siblings Luna and Littlespot return to their mother Catspaw after an oil spill separated them from her.
Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997)[]
Jesse now works with his old friend Randolph at an orca institute where he tracks down Willy and his mate Nicky, and also teams up with Max to stop the latter's father from hunting the whales.
Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove (2010)[]
Kirra discovers a baby killer whale washed ashore in the lagoon near her grandfather's rundown seaside amusement park in South Africa. She names the orca Willy and embarks on a quest to lead him back to his pod before he's sold.
Television[]
Free Willy (1994–1995)[]
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | ||||
| 1 | 13 | October 1, 1994 | December 24, 1994 | ||
| 2 | 8 | January 7, 1995 | February 25, 1995 | ||
Cast and crew[]
Cast[]
| Characters | Original series | Animated series | Reboot | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Willy | Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home |
Free Willy 3: The Rescue |
Free Willy | Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove | ||
| Season 1 | Season 2 | |||||
| Jesse | Jason James Richter | Zachary Bennett | ||||
| Willy | Keiko | Animatronic | Paul Haddad | Animatronic | ||
| Randolph Johnson | August Schellenberg | Michael Fletcher | ||||
| Annie Greenwood | Jayne Atkinson | Sheila McCarthy | ||||
| Glen Greenwood | Michael Madsen | Ron Len | ||||
| Dwight Mercer | Mykelti Williamson | |||||
| Rae Lindley | Lori Petty | |||||
| Dial | Michael Ironside | |||||
| Wade | Richard Riehle | |||||
| Perry | Michael Bacall | |||||
| Gwenie | Danielle Harris | |||||
| Elvis | Francis Capra | |||||
| Nadine | Mary Kate Schellhardt | |||||
| John Milner | Jon Tenney | |||||
| Dr. Kate Haley | Elizabeth Peña | |||||
| Bill Wilcox | M. Emmet Walsh | |||||
| Captain Nilson | Steve Kahan | |||||
| Drew Halbert | Annie Corley | |||||
| Max Wesley | Vincent Berry | |||||
| John Wesley | Patrick Kilpatrick | |||||
| Mary Wesley | Tasha Simms | |||||
| 1st Mate Sanderson | Peter LaCroix | |||||
| Dineen | Stephen E. Miller | |||||
| Kron | Ian Tracey | |||||
| Captain Drake | Matthew Walker | |||||
| Rockland Stone The Machine |
Gary Krawford | |||||
| Marlene | Rachel Crawford | |||||
| P.R. Frickley | Andrew Sabiston | |||||
| Mr. Naugle | Neil Crone | |||||
| Lucille | Alyson Court | |||||
| Amphonoids | James Kidnie | |||||
| Kirra Cooper | Bindi Irwin | |||||
| Gus Grisby | Beau Bridges | |||||
| Mansa | Bongolethu Mbutuma | |||||
| Sifiso | Siyabuela Ramba | |||||
| Rolf V.D. Woods | Stephen Jennings | |||||
| Blikkie | Matthew Roberts | |||||
| Jayce | Heima Jaffa | |||||
| Dr. Sam Cooper | Kevin Otto | |||||
| Diff | Louw Venter | |||||
Crew[]
| Film | Crew/Detail | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Composer(s) | Cinematographer | Editor(s) | Production companies |
Distributing companies | ||
| Free Willy | Basil Poledouris | Robbie Greenberg | O. Nicholas Brown | Le Studio Canal+ Regency Enterprises Alcor Films Donner/Shuler-Donner |
Warner Bros. | |
| Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home |
László Kovács | Robert Brown Dallas Puett |
Le Studio Canal+ Regency Enterprises Alcor Films Shuler-Donner/Donner | |||
| Free Willy 3: The Rescue |
Cliff Eidelman | Tobias A. Schliessler | Margaret Goodspeed | Regency Enterprises Shuler Donner/Donner | ||
| Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove |
Enis Rotthoff | Robert Malpage | Sabrina Plisco | ApolloMovie Beteiligungs Film Africa Worldwide |
Warner Premiere | |
Reception[]
Box office performance[]
| Film | Release date | Box office revenue | Budget | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories |
Worldwide | ||||
| Free Willy | July 16, 1993 | $77,698,625 | $76,000,000 | $153,698,625 | $20,000,000 | [1] |
| Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | July 19, 1995 | $30,077,111 | N/A | $30,077,111 | $31,000,000 | [2] |
| Free Willy 3: The Rescue | August 8, 1997 | $3,446,539 | N/A | $3,446,539 | N/A | [3] |
| Total | $111,222,275 | $76,000,000 | $187,222,275 | $51,000,000 | ||
Critical and public response[]
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Willy | 71% (31 reviews)[4] | 79 (14 reviews)[5] | A[6] |
| Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | 50% (26 reviews)[7] | N/A | A-[6] |
| Free Willy 3: The Rescue | 44% (16 reviews)[8] | N/A | B+[6] |
| Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove | N/A | N/A | N/A |
References[]
- ^ "Free Willy (1993)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ "Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ "Free Willy". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
- ^ "Free Willy". Metacritic. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Cinemascore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on 2018-12-20.
- ^ "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ "Free Willy 3: The Rescue". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
External links[]
- Warner Bros. Pictures franchises
- Film series introduced in 1993
- Adventure film series
- Children's film series
- English-language films
- Film franchises
- American film series
- Fictional killer whales
- Amusement parks in fiction
- Warner Bros. films
- Free Willy (franchise)