National Treasure 3 & 4 ?! Big Thunder Mountain … The Movie ?!

Jim Hill

16 years ago

Marvin T. writes in ask about “National Treasure: Book of Secrets.”

What do you make of the last scene of “Book of Secrets” ? The one where the President of the United States asks Benjamin Gates about what he thought about Page 47 in the President’s book. And the historian / treasurer hunter replies that “It’s life-altering.”

The President of the United States (Bruce Greenwood) and Benjamin Gates (Nicolas
Cage) confer in Walt Disney Pictures’ “National Treasure: Book of Secrets.”
Photo by Robert Zuckerman. Copyright 2007 Disney Enterprises, Inc.
and Jerry Bruckheimer, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Was that what I think it was ? The set-up for “National Treasure 3” ?

Oh, yeah. You can count on there being at least two more installments of the “National Treasure” series, Marvin.

How can I be so sure? Check out the domain names that the Walt Disney Company registered just yesterday:

NATIONALTREASURE3DVD.COM

NATIONALTREASURE4DVD.COM

Given that “National Treasure: Book of Secrets” has already earned over $206 million during its initial domestic run (Which puts it well ahead of what the first “National Treasure” pulled in when that John Turteltaub film played in U.S. theaters back in 2004), both Jerry Bruckheimer and the folks at Disney are anxious to send the Gates family off on yet another adventure.

But until “National Treasure 3” turns up at your local multiplex (Which should be sometime just around Christmas in 2010), Bruckheimer & Disney will be exploring other ways to keep these characters (More importantly, the “National Treasure” franchise) fresh in movie-goers’ minds. One idea that’s being tried out right now is using Disney Press to launch a series of “National Treasure” -themed children’s books. The first of these Gates Family Mysteries …

… Catherine Hapka’s “Changing Tides” arrived on store shelves in November. The second book in this series — “Midnight Ride,” also written by Ms. Hapka — is due to be published next month.

There’s even been some rumblings of Walt Disney Imagineering developing a “National Treasure” -themed attraction. But — to be honest — I think that’s being done mostly to placate Nicholas Cage. Who — when he was doing publicity for “Book of Secrets” back in December — was actually quoted as saying that:

“My biggest thrill would be if Disney was so happy with the movie that they gave it a ride … I love amusement parks and I love Disneyland and I would love to see a National Treasure ride. That would be a dream come true for me.”

But before anything like that can happen, Disney & Bruckheimer first have to contend with “National Treasure 3.” As in: Coming up with a storyline that would send the Gates family off in search of some artifact that could possibly have “life-altering” consequences.

If you were to do any poking around the Web, you’d find that the “National Treasure” fan community has already decided what Benjamin Gates should be searching for next. And that’s the Fountain of Youth.

There’s only one slight problem with that scenario. Do you remember the end of “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” ?

Where Captain Jack Sparrow was using that chunk of chart that he’d swiped from Barbossa so that he could then follow the course that Ponce de León took back in 1513 …

Back when this Spanish explorer had gone in search of Aqua de Vita …

… AKA the water of life which flows from the Fountain of Youth.

Now given that Bruckheimer & Disney do eventually hope to put a “Pirates 4” into production (A film that — I hear — would toss the Elizabeth & Will characters over the side in favor of doing a bawdy buddy picture which would star Jack Sparrow & Barbossa. Where both captains of the Black Pearl would initially be competing for the exact same prize. But eventually all the double crossing would have to stop as these two rivals were then forced to join forces in order to defeat some supernatural terror), I’d say that it’s highly doubtful that Jerry & Mickey would cannibalize the setting of the next “Pirates of the Caribbean” picture just so Benjamin Gates could then go off in search of the Fountain of Youth in “National Treasure 3.”

Though, that said, I do want to share one gag that a friend in the Frank Wells building recently told me. Where he envisioned Disney & Bruckheimer actually mashing together its two top-grossing franchises:

“Wouldn’t it be funny if — when Benjamin Gates arrived at the Fountain of Youth — he then found Captain Jack Sparrow and Barbossa ? It could be the Disney version of “Alien vs. Predator.”

Which is admittedly an interesting idea. But not one I see Jerry and/or Mickey pursuing. Not now, anyway.

As to the proposed storyline for “National Treasure 3” … Though Bruckheimer — in an interview that he did with Collider back in December — claimed not to know anything about the plot of the proposed sequel, saying …

“The writers might know, but I don’t know. And they’re not going to tell me now because they’re on strike.”

Inside the Frank Wells building, there’s already a brief plot description making the rounds. Which would supposedly send the Gates family off to Easter Island and beyond in search of Atlantis. More importantly, the pure, clean power source that was supposedly lost forever when this ancient civilization sank beneath the sea. Which — were it to be harnessed today — would immediately put an end to global warming. Not to mention making gas & oil obsolete.

Which should thrill Nicholas Cage. Since he said — as Cage was doing promotion for “Book of Secrets” back in December — that:

“I was very happy to see that we went to London, England and Paris, France. But I’d like to see us go wider still (in any follow-up films. Benjamin Gates) could go to Africa, Egypt, Asia and keep going.”

Please keep in mind, though, that nothing’s carved in stone just yet. Given the way things work in Hollywood these days, that proposed storyline is bound to change once the writer’s strike has been resolved and official development can finally begin on the “National Treasure 3” screenplay.

And who knows? Maybe Mickey & Jerry will then decide to do something truly off the wall. Like sending Benjamin Gates out to the American Southwest in search of a certain mountain. Which is said to contain a huge albeit cursed amount of gold.

Which I know sounds totally ridiculous. Except that — late last week — the Walt Disney Company also registered these four domain names:

BIGTHUNDERMOUNTAIN-MOVIE.COM

BIGTHUNDERMOUNTAINMOVIE.COM

THUNDERMOUNTAIN-MOVIE.COM

THUNDERMOUNTAINMOVIE.COM

And from what I understand, this is not a case of the Mouse simply doing some place holding. But — rather — that these domain names were registered because Walt Disney Pictures actually has a “Big Thunder Mountain” movie in development. More importantly, that folks at the studio are trying to convince Bruckheimer to produce the thing.

Now what this proposed big screen version of “Big Thunder Mountain” might do to that “Jungle Cruise” movie that Disney already has in development (Or — for that matter — whether this western-themed production might then have some impact on that big budget “Lone Ranger” remake / revival that Jerry’s been trying to get Disney to greenlight for a while now) … Who can say?

All I know is that we’ve got a lot of new “National Treasure” -related stuff headed our way over the next five years. So I hope you folks really like Nicholas Cage. Because you’re going to be seeing a lot of him (or should I say his Benjamin Gates character?) now through 2013.

Your thoughts?