Disney's 'Lone Ranger' a balance-sheet danger

It was billed as one of the season's biggest blockbusters, reuniting Johnny Depp - as Tonto in The Lone Ranger - with the team behind the huge success of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

But Walt Disney has now warned that the film could go down as one of the year's biggest flops, predicting losses of almost US$200 million.

The Lone Ranger stars Armie Hammer as the masked Texas lawman and Depp as his Comanche spirit guide. Costing US$225 million, the film, directed by Gore Verbinski and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, suffered a tortuous production process and met with largely scathing reviews on its release in the US.

Concerns over the odds of recouping the investment were reportedly voiced during production, and the shoot halted for several months over fears it was running over budget. Disney was at one point reported to be threatening to shelve the entire movie over spiralling costs, partly spooked by the failure of another western, Cowboys and Aliens.

When the film opened in the US and Canada over the July 4 Independence Day weekend it took just US$29.9 million. By comparison, the Superman reboot Man of Steel took US$125 million.