Free Willy
| Free Willy | |
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Theatrical release poster for Free Willy
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| Directed by | Simon Wincer |
| Produced by |
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| Screenplay by |
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| Story by | Keith A. Walker |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Basil Poledouris |
| Cinematography | Robbie Greenberg |
| Edited by | O. Nicholas Brown |
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Production
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| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Family Entertainment |
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Release date
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Running time
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112 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $20 million |
| Box office | $153.6 million |
Free Willy is a 1993 American family drama film directed by Simon Wincer, produced by Lauren Shuler Donner and Jennie Lew Tugend, and written by Keith A. Walker and Corey Blechman from a story by Walker. The film stars Jason James Richter as a foster boy who befriends a captive orca.
The film received positive attention from critics and was a financial success, grossing $153.6 million over $20 million, and has a small cult following. It eventually grew into a small franchise, spawning three sequels and a video game companion.
Michael Jackson produced and performed "Will You Be There", the theme for the film, which can be heard during the film's credits. The song won the MTV Movie Award for "Best Song in a Movie" in 1994. It was also included on Jackson's album, Dangerous, and All Time Greatest Movie Songs, released by Sony in 1999. Jackson also performed songs for the film's first sequel.
The film begins with a pod of orcas swimming near the coastline of the Pacific Northwest. The pod is tracked down by a group of whalers, and one of them, Willy, is trapped and sent to an amusement park.
Sometime later in Astoria, Oregon, Jesse, a 12-year-old boy abandoned by his mother six years before, is caught by the police for stealing food and vandalizing the theme park. Jesse's social worker Dwight earns him a reprieve by finding him a foster home and having him clean up the graffiti at the theme park. His foster parents are the supportive and kind Annie and Glen Greenwood, but Jesse is initially unruly and hostile to them.
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