The movie 'Maleficent' brought in $170.6 million globally during its opening weekend, marking the best opening of star Angelina Jolie's career.
Maleficent cost $175 million to produce after reshoots, reportedly due to tension between Jolie and director Robert Stromberg, according to THR.
Angelina Jolie said to the LA Times, "It's such a great project. After having directed and thinking that I wasn't sure if I wanted to act, this was such a crazy idea and I was so challenged by it.
Jolie added, "As an actress, it was to not do something where I'm taking myself so seriously and trying to do something for myself and my art, but just to remember that it was to play and entertain and to try something big," says the actress, who turns 39 next week and is editing her second feature, "Unbroken." "But also, the artist in me felt it was good to do something bold every once in awhile that you're not comfortable with, that you haven't done. I was actually a bit nervous to take her on. I don't have a big voice, I don't do things that are comedic; but sometimes it's great to jump into things that you're unsure of and you haven't done."
Jolie's Maleficent starts out as a happy character, whose magical powers help protect the creatures in her enchanted woodland. But when she's horribly betrayed by the man she loves (Sharlto Copley), who becomes the human king, she vows vengeance on his infant daughter Aurora (Elle Fanning). The angry Maleficent grows in her wickedness over the years; but the twist is that a bond develops between Maleficent and Aurora.
Elle Fanning said about her character Aurora, "I am a very energetic, excited person. I definitely do smile an awful lot, it's kind of part of me. But also, this is a fairy tale, so it's exaggerated, of course. No one can be that naïve."
She continued to the LA Times, "But it was difficult to get my character right and not just make her the girl who is happy all the time. Even though she is so lovely, you want to give her a little more substance and depth. We worked on that, to make sure she was not someone you would just disregard."
