Harry Potter And The Order Of Phoenix Shortened To Avoid Grindhouse Failure?

Movie studio logic has always baffled me. Because Grindhouse failed at the box office, everyone is blaming the film's three plus hour running time. Now supposedly Warner Bros has ordered director David Yates to cut the running time of Harry Potter and The Order of Phoenix, so that audiences won't be frightened away. Has the world gone insane?

First of all, JK Rowling's fifth book is the longest in the series (870 pages). The studio is nuts for even trying to contain the story in one movie. It has already come out that much of the book will not appear on screen. I don't know how the film could be under two and a half hours and be anywhere faithful to the book. And besides, the last four Harry Potter films have averaged over 2 and a half hours in length. Chamber of Secrets was over two hours anf fourty minutes.

Long Movies result in box office failure?

When did Hollywood forget? The biggest films of all time were the longest films of all time. Ten out of the top 15 movies of all time are over two and a half hours long. And three of those films are Harry Potter films. But may-be the studio believes that something has changed. Let's take a look at last year: Pirates of the Caribbean, The Da Vinci Code, Superman Returns, The Departed, Dreamgirls, Casino Royale – all big box office draws, and all nearing or over the 2.5 hour mark.