John Carter cost about $250 million to make. If you add marketing costs on on top of that it may creep toward $400 million or so. The film would need to make $700 million to land a sequel, according to New Yorker.

See, when big budget movies are released there’s often talk of a franchise or sequel. Disney’s Prince of Persia was supposed to be a trilogy until it lost money. Tron: Legacy cost $170 million to make but went to about $400 million after marketing costs. There are still rumors about a sequel to Tron: Legacy, although nothing is confirmed.

John Carter does have Andrew Stanton, the director of Finding Nemo, handling this and he does emphasize story… so it does have a chance. The Disney hype machine could push people to see it as well. Plus it’s a much-loved book series, which also means there’s plenty of content for further films if needed.

I can’t help but think that $700 million is a bit out of reach, especially since early reaction was a bit mixed. Some people loved early footage, others thought it was a bore-fest. Here’s hoping the film is great. [New Yorker via Slashfilm]

andrew stanton, disney, john carter, sequel