Jeffrey Katzenberg Says ‘Turbo’ Will Be Profitable Thanks to Overseas

DWA topper says the movie will make its money back overseas

"Turbo" will turn a profit despite its poor domestic box office performance, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg told analysts Wednesday.

"Based on data to-date, we believe 'Turbo' will be a profitable film for us," Katzenberg said on the company’s second quarter earnings call.

The $127-million dollar movie opened to just $31.2 million over its first five days, below what the company had expected. Katzenberg blamed increased competition in the animation industry, saying that the number of major animation releases this summer was unprecedented.

"It was just a bad date," Katzenberg said. "We've seen more animation this summer by maybe 100% then ever before."

Also read: DreamWorks Animation Profits Jump 73 Percent Thanks to 'The Croods' 

However, he said that the film’s strong international performance would ensure profitability, calling the film "a hit pretty much everywhere in the world."

"Turbo" will also be a test of DreamWorks Animation’s efforts to diversify its businesses so that it is less reliant on its films’ box office performance.

DreamWorks has created a television show based on the movie for Netflix and the German network RTL, and licensed the film’s characters for theme parks and cruise ships around the world.

Also read: 'Turbo' Aims to Break DreamWorks Animation's Box-Office Addiction

The company will pursue the same strategy with future releases, and announced a new deal with Hasbro to make toys for two of its upcoming movies, "B.O.O." and "Trolls."

"We're executing on our strategy to deliver one consumer products tentpole property every year," chief marketing officer Anne Globe said.

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