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 The original Angry Birds, launched in 2009, remains the top
paid mobile app of all time. But its creator's fortunes have
dwindled after it failed to create new hit games; last year
Rovio cut a third of its staff, hived off non-core businesses
and booked a nearly $15 million annual loss. Now the company is
pinning its hopes on "The Angry Birds Movie", which premiered
this week in France and French-speaking Belgium. "The whole
(movie) project will have a positive impact on all of our
business operations," Rovio CEO Kati Levoranta told Reuters,
adding that the company was expecting to return to profits this
year.
Rovio bank rolled the $73 million feature film itself.
"It's a question of risk and reward, but it's also about
creative control," Mikael Hed, executive producer and chairman
of wholly owned subsidiary Rovio Animation co, told Reuters.
"The one who pays the bill gets to decide what's in the movie."
The movie expands on the origin story of what made the birds so
angry -- that green pigs had stolen the birds' eggs. The
characters may have a fresh look, but for its legions of fans,
it has plenty of references to the original game where players
use a slingshot to fire angry bird bombs at the pigs. The movie
was directed by veteran animators Clay Kaytis and Fergal Reilly,
known for their work with Disney and Sony Pictures,
respectively. The voice-over cast features Sean Penn and 'Game
of Thrones' star Peter Dinklage.
Rovio launched a movie-based Angry Birds Action! game sequel in
April and has signed up promotional deals with the likes of
McDonald's and Hennes & Mauritz. Sony Pictures is handling the
movie's marketing and distribution.
"The challenge for the movie will be to see how loyal those
original fans are and whether the movie can bring in new fans to
both the movie, and then back to the games," said analyst Jack
Kent from research firm IHS Technology.
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Ultimately, however, Rovio must find new hit concepts.
"I think Rovio needs to look at alternate properties in order to
secure its future," said Steve Bailey, another IHS analyst. "The
company can't depend on Angry Birds for much longer." While many
companies have created games out of movies, the reverse approach is
less common, outside of a handful of examples like the Lara Croft
Tomb Raider franchise last decade. A movie based on PlayStation
console game Ratchet & Clank has performed below expectations at the
box office since its release in April. "The Lego Movie", linked to
the 83-year-old line of plastic bricks, however, was a big success
in 2014 and helped revive its toy sales. Movie tracking site
boxoffice.com forecast "The Angry Birds Movie" to score $43 million
in weekend after its U.S. opening on May 20, noting that the film is
the only fully animated film scheduled to be released this month.
Rovio won't say what its own expectations are but it is also
counting on the release to boost its licensing and merchandising
business through a string of new deals with companies including toy
makers Lego and Hasbro, and Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba.
(Editing by Eric Auchard and Sonya Hepinstall)
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