Free Willy (franchise)
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 a street kid named Jesse who befriends an orca 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.
| Free Willy | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Keith A. Walker |
| Original work | Free Willy |
| Owner | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Years | 1993–2010 |
| 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) |
|
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 is 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 him free, Jesse reunites with Willy during a camping trip in the San Juan Islands with the Greenwoods and 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 in addition to endangering Luna.
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
Cast and crew
Cast
This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.
- An empty, dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- U indicates an uncredited appearance.
- V indicates a voice-only role.
| 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 BennettV | ||||
| Willy | Keiko | KeikoU | Paul HaddadV | |||
| Rae Lindley | Lori Petty | |||||
| Annie Greenwood | Jayne Atkinson | Sheila McCarthyV | ||||
| Randolph Johnson | August Schellenberg | Michael FletcherV | ||||
| Glen Greenwood | Michael Madsen | Ron LenV | ||||
| Dial | Michael Ironside | |||||
| Wade | Richard Riehle | |||||
| Dwight Mercer | Mykelti Williamson | |||||
| Perry | Michael Bacall | |||||
| Gwenie | Danielle Harris | |||||
| John Milner | Jon Tenney | |||||
| Kate Haley | Elizabeth Peña | |||||
| Elvis | Francis Capra | |||||
| Nadine | Mary Kate Schellhardt | |||||
| Wilcox | M. Emmet Walsh | |||||
| Captain Nilson | Steve Kahan | |||||
| Commander Blake | John Considine | |||||
| Drew Halbert | Annie Corley | |||||
| Max Wesley | Vincent Berry | |||||
| John Wesley | Patrick Kilpatrick | |||||
| Kron | Ian Tracey | |||||
| 1st Mate Sanderson | Peter LaCroix | |||||
| Captain Drake | Matthew Walker | |||||
| Dineen | Stephen E. Miller | |||||
| Mary Wesley | Tasha Simms | |||||
| Rockland Stone The Machine |
Gary KrawfordV | |||||
| Marlene | Rachel CrawfordV | |||||
| P.R. Frickley | Andrew SabistonV | |||||
| Mr. Naugle | Neil CroneV | |||||
| Lucille | Alyson CourtV | |||||
| Amphonoids | James KidnieV | |||||
| 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 | $77,709,806 | $76,000,000 | $153,709,806 | $20,000,000 | [1] |
| Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | July 19, 1995 | $30,077,111 | — | $30,077,111 | $31,000,000 | [2] |
| Free Willy 3: The Rescue | August 8, 1997 | $3,446,539 | — | $3,446,539 | — | [3] |
| Total | $111,222,275 | $76,000,000 | $187,222,275 | $51,000,000 | ||
Critical and public response
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore[4] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Willy | 71% (31 reviews)[5] | 79 (14 reviews)[6] | A |
| Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | 50% (26 reviews)[7] | — | A- |
| Free Willy 3: The Rescue | 44% (16 reviews)[8] | — | B+ |
| Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove | — | — | — |
References
- "Free Willy (1993)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- "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.
- "CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- "Free Willy". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
- "Free Willy". Metacritic. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
- "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- "Free Willy 3: The Rescue". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
