Marketing and promotion
The promotion and advertising for the film was met with criticism and controversy. The filmmakers distanced themselves from the advertising campaign for the film, saying that it was deliberately misleading and made the film seem to be about, or occurring in, a fantasy world.[20] David Paterson was surprised by the trailer, but understood the marketing reasoning behind it, saying:
Although there is a generation that is very familiar with the book, if you are over 40, then you probably haven't, and we need to reach them. [...] Everyone who read the book and sees the trailer says, 'What is this? This is nothing like the book. What are you doing, Dave?' And I say, 'You know what you're seeing is 15 seconds of a 90-minute film. Give me a little leeway and respect. Go see it, and then tell me what you think.[20]
Critics commented on the film's misleading advertisement campaign. One critic said the film was actually "grounded in reality far more than in fantasy",[21] while another thought, "far from a computer generated escapist fantasy, this film is an unpretentious and touching tale of preteen companionship and loss".[22]
Distribution
The film premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood on February 3, 2007.[23] Paterson, an alumnus of the Catholic University of America, held a special advance screening of the film for members of the CUA community at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, Maryland on February 1, 2007.[24] The film opened in the United States on February 16, 2007, in the United Kingdom on May 4, 2007, and in New Zealand on June 7, 2007.[23][25] The film had a strong second place domestic opening over the Presidents' Day weekend, grossing "a higher-than-expected" $28,536,717 from 2,284 screens, earning an average of $9,885 per screen.[26] The opening Friday box office was $6.3 million.[27] The film has a worldwide gross of US$137 million, taking in $82 million in the US and Canada.[5]
The DVD and Blu-ray Disc were released on June 19, 2007 in the US. The DVD and high-definition Blu-ray version shared the same special features; including: "Digital Imagination: Bringing Terabithia to Life", "Behind the Book: The Themes of Bridge to Terabithia", "Keep Your Mind Wide Open" music video by Robb, and two audio commentaries, the first with director Gábor Csupó, writer Jeff Stockwell, and producer Hal Lieberman, and the second with producer Lauren Levine and actors Hutcherson and Robb.[28]
