(Image source: FanPop)

BY BRICE SANDER

Get ready for more Disney magic at the box office- the House of Mouse plans to re-release more of its animated classics in 3D.

Starting with Beauty and the Beast in January 2012-

Followed by Finding Nemo in September-

Then Monster’s Inc in early 2013-

And- finally- The Little Mermaid in September 2013.

So did the king of the jungle becoming the king of the box office have something to with this? The New York Times thinks so-

“Only a few weeks ago Disney executives were insisting they had no plans to use ‘The Lion King’ as a test for audience interest in 3-D conversions of classic animated movies. But box office gold can be convincing: ‘The Lion King’ has sold an astounding $80 million in tickets since trotting back into theaters…”

A Moviefone blogger says this is great- but could get out of hand.  

“Offering younger audiences the chance to experience these favorites in a movie theater is well and good, but it appears Disney has shrewdly taken advantage of what people have known for years: September and January are dead theatrical months … expect this gimmick to extend well past 2013…”

Bloomberg quotes business analyst Wade Holden, who explains it’s all part of a bigger business model.   

“‘This is just pure gravy for Disney, …The 3-D conversions also help DVD sales by elevating the profile of the films...’”

After a year of less-than-stellar sales, The Wall Street Journal suggests the box office needs Disney’s magic touch.

“The plans come at a moment when some in Hollywood had begun to question the viability of 3-D … [But] for Disney, releasing proven hits in 3-D could produce a reliable and profitable revenue stream. Such conversions typically cost less than $10 million…”

An OC Weekly blogger hopes Disney takes those profits and gets back to basics.

“…I'd love to see Disney concentrate on creating some new soon-to-be-classic animation rather than relying on their back catalog to make a buck.Hopefully they'll take the profits from these films and dump them into new projects. Or they'll just keep rehashing old titles until they force a 3D version of The Aristocats on us.”

Disney’s not alone in the re-release trend- Hollywood’s also ordered 3D conversions of Titanic and the Star Wars trilogy for next year.