The Royal world premier of Tim Burton’s version of Alice In Wonderland will take place this Thursday at the Odeon cinema in London’s Leicester Square even though Odeon does not plan to show the movie nationwide. Both Odeon and Vue Cinemas have announced that they will be boycotting the 3-D extravaganza starring Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter because Disney has decided to release the film on DVD format just 12 weeks after it hits the big screen.
The usual amount of time between cinema release and DVD release is 17 weeks. Odeon say that 12 weeks is not enough time for cinemas to make a profit from the film and will have a negative impact on the amount of people walking through their doors. They also said that Disney’s decision could threaten the very existence of some cinemas. They are also a little bit frustrated by the fact that they have been installing 3-D projectors in their cinemas over the past year.
The film was partly shot in the U.K. and has a number of British actors in the cast including Stephen Fry, Timothy Spall, Helena Bonham Carter and Matt Lucas. Odeon have said that they will still be in charge of the films premier in the U.K. because of the films British cast and also because the premier will raise money for charity. Various members of the Royal Family are also to be in attendance. However, only 40% of U.K. cinemas will be showing the film after that.

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