Disney puts "Jungle Cruise" in high gear

LOS ANGELES - Following the record-breaking success of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," Walt Disney Pictures is giving high-priority status to another potential adventure franchise based on a Disneyland ride.

It is developing "Jungle Cruise," inspired by the ride in which parkgoers travel the jungle river guided by a riverboat skipper, encountering such wild creatures as piranhas and gorillas during their tour. The ride was one of the 22 original attractions when the park opened in 1955.

The executive producers of the CW network's superhero saga "Smallville," Al Gough and Miles Millar, are in negotiations to write the script. Plot details are being kept under lock and key, but the movie will be set in the 20th century.

"Dead Man's Chest," the second feature based on Pirates of the Caribbean, another of Disneyland's most popular and long-standing rides, has grossed more than $1 billion worldwide. The across-the-board success of the film, with its broad demographic appeal, has been cited by Disney's new president of production Oren Aviv as representing the direction in which the movie division is heading.

Movies based on Disneyland rides, however, have not always had smooth sailing. While "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" grossed $305.4 million domestically in 2003 and "The Haunted Mansion" banked a solid $75.8 million that same year, Disney's "Country Bears" took in just $17 million in 2002.