‘Into The Woods’ Teaser Trailer Revealed

The teaser trailer for Disney’s upcoming Into The Woods has been released, and it’s promoting the movie adaptation of the hit Broadway musical as a big-budget, must-see event, The Wire is reporting.

The film, scheduled for release in the U.S. on December 25th, stars Johnny Depp, Meryl Streep, Anna Kendrick, and Chris Pine, among others, according to The Telegraph (U.K.). Rob Marshall (Chicago, Memoirs of a Geisha) directed. The Telegraph also notes that Into The Woods marks the first time Disney has adapted a live musical for the big screen.

The Steven Sondheim musical was a raging success on Broadway, receiving multiple Tony awards, running for several years, and spawning a 2002 revival, plus multiple national touring companies, according to Broadway.

Into The Woods takes place in a grittier, more dangerous universe of Grimm fairy tales, and follows the story of a baker and his wife trying to find four magical items to break a witch’s spell.

Big-screen adaptations of Broadway musicals are something of a gamble for movie studios; some adaptations have been huge successes, while others have been commercial and critical failures. 2012’s Les Miserables, for example, was a box-office smash and won multiple Academy Awards (see this Inquisitr article). Similarly, Grease and The Sound of Music are considered movie classics. 2014’s Jersey Boys, on the other hand, was a critical and commercial bomb, according to Rotten Tomatoes, as was the highly-anticipated Rock of Ages.

Having the Disney brand attached to Into The Woods is no guarantee of success, either. Two of the biggest box-office bombs in history have come from the Mouse House. John Carter of Mars, according to Empire, and Mars Needs Moms, according to The Hollywood Reporter, both left Disney with egg on its face and red ink in its books. However, the word “Mars” does not appear anywhere in the title of Into The Woods, so it may be a safe bet after all.

Finally, there’s the matter of two leads – Johnny Depp and Meryl Streep – not being known for their singing chops, appearing in a musical. Johnny’s singing in 2007’s Sweeney Todd received mixed, but generally positive, reviews. The New York Times, for example, raved about his performance.

Meryl Streep, similarly, is known more for her acting chops than her singing, although she has sung in a few films, most notably in 2008’s Mamma Mia! The film received mixed reviews, but USA Today praised Meryl’s singing performance.

Into The Woods is scheduled for release in the U.S. on December 25th.

Image courtesy of: Fairy Tale News Blog