After success of 'Lion King,' more Disney, Pixar classics going 3D

'Finding Nemo'

Credit: Disney

Well, it worked for "The Lion King."

Disney is going back to add a third dimension to four more animated Disney/Pixar hits. 1989's "The Little Mermaid," 1991's "Beauty and the Beast," 2001's "Monster's Inc." and 2003's "Finding Nemo" will all be re-released to theaters in 3D over the next two years.

"Beauty and the Beast" will hit theaters first, on January 13, 2012. "Finding Nemo" follows on September 14, 2012, with "Monsters, Inc." arriving on January 18, 2013. "The Little Mermaid" swims ashore September 13, 2013.

"Great stories and great characters are timeless, and at Disney we’re fortunate to have a treasure trove of both," said Alan Bergman, President, The Walt Disney Studios. "We’re thrilled to give audiences of all ages the chance to experience these beloved tales in an exciting new way with 3D – and in the case of younger generations, for the first time on the big screen."

Back before the days of home video, Walt Disney used to re-release his hit films in the theater every few years, allowing younger audiences to catch films they missed the first (or second) time-around; "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," "Bambi," "Dumbo" and other classics made a lot of extra coin that way.

And it seems that Disney/Pixar, encouraged by the success of the newly-3D "Lion King," are following a similar gameplan.

"The Lion King" has earned around $80 million in 2011, in addition to the nearly $400 million it pulled in worldwide in 1994.

Disney is hoping the four new titles will meet with similar success.

In 2009, the first two "Toy Story" films received a limited re-release as a double-header, in anticipation of last year's 3D "Toy Story 3."

But only one of the four new 3D titles tie into an ongoing franchise: The "Monsters Inc." prequel, "Monsters University," opens nationwide June 21, 2013.

What do you think of all these 3D re-releases? Are they worth your money? Are their other Disney/Pixar classics you'd like to see in 3D?

Dave Lewis
Producer

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Dave Lewis has been a Los Angeles-based entertainment writer and editor for nearly ten years. Originally hailing from Minneapolis, he moved to L.A. in 1996 to attend USC, before working for various periodicals and web sites including a lengthy stint at Variety.com. He joined the HitFix staff in 2011.