Free Willy
Created byKeith A. Walker
Original workFree Willy
OwnerWarner Bros. Pictures
Years1993–2010
Films and television
Film(s)
Animated seriesFree Willy (1994–95)
Direct-to-videoFree Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove (2010)
Audio
Soundtrack(s)
  • Free Willy (1993)
  • Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)
  • Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997)

Free Willy is a media franchise from Warner Bros. that started with the 1993 film Free Willy that went on to become a sleeper hit at the box office. The original series primarily follows a street kid named Jesse who befriends an orca named Willy and eventually develops a strong connection. While trying to juggle his newly found life, he and Willy are challenged with overcoming or defeating various hazards to the ocean or Willy himself including corporate greed, hunters, poachers, and oil disasters.

Following the success of Free Willy, it was followed by an animated series, two sequels, and a direct-to-video reboot.

Films

Film U.S. release date Director(s) Screenwriter(s) Story by Producer(s)
Free Willy June 11, 1993 Simon Wincer Keith A. Walker & Corey Blechman Keith A. Walker Lauren Shuler Donner and Jennie Lew Tugend
Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home July 19, 1995 Dwight Little Karen Janszen, Corey Blechman and John Mattson
Free Willy 3: The Rescue August 7, 1997 Sam Pillsbury John Mattson Jennie Lew Tugend
Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove March 23, 2010 Will Geiger Cindy McCreery David Wicht, John Stainton, Laura Lodin

Free Willy (1993)

A delinquent orphan named Jesse is forced to clean up graffiti at the Northwest Adventure Park as part of his probation while staying with new foster parents. There, he becomes attached to a captive killer whale, the film's eponymous "Willy", until he discovers a secret from the park's greedy owner that threatens their friendship.

Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)

Two years after setting him free, Jesse reunites with Willy during a camping trip in the San Juan Islands with the Greenwoods and newly-discovered half-brother named Elvis as the teenager tries to help Willy and his siblings Luna and Littlespot return to their mother Catspaw after an oil spill separated them in addition to endangering Luna.

Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997)

Jesse now works with his old friend Randolph at an orca institute where he tracks down Willy and his mate Nicky, and also teams up with Max to stop the latter's father from hunting the whales.

Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove (2010)

Kirra discovers a baby killer whale washed ashore in the lagoon near her grandfather's rundown seaside amusement park in South Africa. She names the orca Willy and embarks on a quest to lead him back to his pod before he's sold.

Television

Free Willy (1994–1995)

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
113October 1, 1994 (1994-10-01)December 24, 1994 (1994-12-24)
28January 7, 1995 (1995-01-07)February 25, 1995 (1995-02-25)

Cast and crew

Cast

List indicator(s)

This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.

  • An empty, dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
  •  U indicates an uncredited appearance.
  •  V indicates a voice-only role.
Characters Original series Animated series Reboot
Free Willy Free Willy 2:
The Adventure Home
Free Willy 3:
The Rescue
Free Willy Free Willy:
Escape from Pirate's Cove
Season 1 Season 2
Jesse Jason James Richter Zachary BennettV
Willy Keiko KeikoU Paul HaddadV CGI Orca
Rae Lindley Lori Petty
Annie Greenwood Jayne Atkinson Sheila McCarthyV
Randolph Johnson August Schellenberg Michael FletcherV
Glen Greenwood Michael Madsen Ron LenV
Dial Michael Ironside
Wade Richard Riehle
Dwight Mercer Mykelti Williamson
Perry Michael Bacall
Gwenie Danielle Harris
John Milner Jon Tenney
Kate Haley Elizabeth Peña
Elvis Francis Capra
Nadine Mary Kate Schellhardt
Wilcox M. Emmet Walsh
Captain Nilson Steve Kahan
Commander Blake John Considine
Drew Halbert Annie Corley
Max Wesley Vincent Berry
John Wesley Patrick Kilpatrick
Kron Ian Tracey
1st Mate Sanderson Peter LaCroix
Captain Drake Matthew Walker
Dineen Stephen E. Miller
Mary Wesley Tasha Simms
Rockland Stone
The Machine
Gary KrawfordV
Marlene Rachel CrawfordV
P.R. Frickley Andrew SabistonV
Mr. Naugle Neil CroneV
Lucille Alyson CourtV
Amphonoids James KidnieV
Kirra Cooper Bindi Irwin
Gus Grisby Beau Bridges
Mansa Bongolethu Mbutuma
Sifiso Siyabuela Ramba
Rolf V.D. Woods Stephen Jennings
Blikkie Matthew Roberts
Jayce Heima Jaffa
Dr. Sam Cooper Kevin Otto
Diff Louw Venter

Crew

Film Crew/Detail
Composer(s) Cinematographer Editor(s) Production
companies
Distributing
companies
Free Willy Basil Poledouris Robbie Greenberg O. Nicholas Brown Le Studio Canal+
Regency Enterprises
Alcor Films
Donner/Shuler-Donner
Warner Bros.
Free Willy 2:
The Adventure Home
László Kovács Robert Brown
Dallas Puett
Le Studio Canal+
Regency Enterprises
Alcor Films
Shuler-Donner/Donner
Free Willy 3:
The Rescue
Cliff Eidelman Tobias A. Schliessler Margaret Goodspeed Regency Enterprises
Shuler Donner/Donner
Free Willy:
Escape from Pirate's Cove
Enis Rotthoff Robert Malpage Sabrina Plisco ApolloMovie Beteiligungs
Film Africa Worldwide
Warner Premiere

Reception

Box office performance

Film Release date Box office revenue Budget Ref.
North America Other
territories
Worldwide
Free Willy July 16, 1993 $77,709,806 $76,000,000 $153,709,806 $20,000,000 [1]
Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home July 19, 1995 $30,077,111 $30,077,111 $31,000,000 [2]
Free Willy 3: The Rescue August 8, 1997 $3,446,539 $3,446,539 [3]
Total $111,222,275 $76,000,000 $187,222,275 $51,000,000

Critical and public response

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore[4]
Free Willy 71% (31 reviews)[5] 79 (14 reviews)[6] A
Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home 50% (26 reviews)[7] A-
Free Willy 3: The Rescue 44% (16 reviews)[8] B+
Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove

References

  1. "Free Willy (1993)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  2. "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  3. "Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  4. "CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  5. "Free Willy". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  6. "Free Willy". Metacritic. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  7. "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  8. "Free Willy 3: The Rescue". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
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