February 10, 2001
Movie Tie-Ins, Video
Games Big at Toy Fair
Joseph Gallivan
Toy Fair opens Sunday in the city with toy makers and sellers praying the horrible holidays of 2000 are behind them.
The industry is hoping the stars align for them and Hollywood comes to the rescue, with four big movies set to unleash a slew of fantasy characters. Licenses for "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," "Jurassic Park 3," "Monsters Inc." and "The Lord of the Rings" will spawn a glut of spooky action figures and swashbuckling heroes.
Toy Biz created its six-inch action figures by laser-scanning the faces of the stars of "Lord Of The Rings," such as Liv Tyler and venerable English thespian Ian McKellen, as they shot all three films of the trilogy in New Zealand. Toy Biz will release new assortments every few months for three years - assuming the movies don't bomb.