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 "excerpt": "Condorman is a 1981 Walt Disney live-action comedy directed by Charles Jarrott, starring Michael Crawford as comic artist Woody Wilkins, who becomes his own superhero to help a Soviet spy defect; it flopped, costing Disney a $9.5 million write-off.",
 "snippet": "Condorman is a 1981 Walt Disney live-action comedy directed by Charles Jarrott, starring Michael Crawford as comic artist Woody Wilkins, who becomes his own superhero to help a Soviet spy defect; it flopped, costing Disney a $9.5 million write-off.",
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 "markdown": "# Condorman\n\n**Condorman** is a 1981 American live-action comedy adventure film produced by Walt Disney Productions, directed by Charles Jarrott, and starring [Michael Crawford](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-crawford), Oliver Reed, and [Barbara Carrera](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbara-carrera). It follows comic book artist Woody Wilkins, who adopts the identity of his own creation, the spy hero Condorman, and is drawn into a real CIA operation to help a Soviet defector escape.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://movies.disney.com/condorman)</sup>\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Release | First released in England on July 2, 1981; U.S. release August 7, 1981<sup>[3](https://d23.com/a-to-z/condorman-film/condorman-1180w-600h/)</sup> |\n| Format | Live action, 90 minutes, rated PG, filmed in Panavision with Dolby Stereo sound<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup> |\n| Principal cast | Michael Crawford (Woody Wilkins), Oliver Reed (Krokov), Barbara Carrera (Natalia), [James Hampton](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-hampton-actor) (Harry Oslo)<sup>[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082199/?bypassRefViewPref=1)</sup> |\n| Writers | Marc Stirdivant, Robert Sheckley, and Mickey Rose<sup>[2](https://movies.disney.com/condorman)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082199/?bypassRefViewPref=1)</sup> |\n| Box office | Disney wrote off $9.5 million after poor domestic grosses, per a 16 September 1981 Variety report<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup> |\n| Critical scores | 27% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, 46 on Metacritic, 5.7/10 on IMDb<sup>[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/condorman)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/condorman/critic-reviews/)</sup> |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nWoody Wilkins, a cartoonist and comic book writer, tests his hero's gadgets himself, opening the film with a wingsuit flight from the [Eiffel Tower](https://www.edgepedia.org/eiffel-tower) that ends in the Seine. His friend Harry, a CIA file clerk in Paris, recruits him as a civilian courier for a document exchange in Istanbul. There Woody meets the Russian contact Natalia, defeats Turkish agents mostly by accident, and lets her believe he is a real spy named Condorman. Impressed, Natalia later asks him to help her defect, and Woody uses the request as leverage to have the CIA equip him with working versions of his comic-strip creations, including high-tech wings and a gadget-laden car, while the KGB officer Krokov pursues them.<sup>[7](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN?cp=1&cxt=Filmography2&pos=8&sid=967b42a8-976f-4b00-a284-3a7248491d9f&sr=0.12749018)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[8](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/condorman)</sup>\n\n## Production\n\nWalt Disney Productions referred to the film as *The Condor Man*, then *Condor Man*, before settling on *Condorman* before production began.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup> The picture was initially scheduled for 1979 but was one of two Disney films rescheduled for 1980.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup> [Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) began in late April 1980 in France and other European locations, and wrapped with process sequences at [Pinewood Studios](https://www.edgepedia.org/pinewood-studios) in England.<sup>[7](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN?cp=1&cxt=Filmography2&pos=8&sid=967b42a8-976f-4b00-a284-3a7248491d9f&sr=0.12749018)</sup> Filming took place in France, Switzerland, and [Monte Carlo](https://www.edgepedia.org/monte-carlo), with Monte Carlo locations doubling as Yugoslavia, Italy, and the South of France; second-unit work included the Eiffel Tower, the Matterhorn tram cable in Switzerland, roads in southern France, and the Mediterranean off Nice and St. Tropez.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup>\n\n**Casting.** According to Hollywood Reporter news items of 19 February and 13 May 1980, [Raquel Welch](https://www.edgepedia.org/raquel-welch) turned down the co-starring role. Searching for a \"sex symbol\" similar to Welch, the filmmakers cast Barbara Carrera as Natalia.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup>\n\nThe opening credits thank the principality of Monaco, the village of Zermatt, the city of Paris, the Société des Bains de Mer de Monte Carlo, the Casino de Monte Carlo, and the [French Naval Aviation](https://www.edgepedia.org/french-naval-aviation) for their cooperation.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup>\n\n## Reception and box office\n\nDisney gave the film a full marketing push involving a comic strip, a comic book, merchandise, and contests, but critics largely panned it and it performed poorly at the box office.<sup>[9](https://13thdimension.com/when-disney-failed-superheroes-1981s-condorman-45-years-later/)</sup> On 16 September 1981, Variety reported that Disney would have to write off $9.5 million because of the film's poor domestic grosses, and that the company's earnings were expected to be ten percent lower than the previous year.<sup>[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)</sup>\n\nReview scores have remained mixed to negative. The film holds 27% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer from 15 reviews, against a 65% audience score from more than 5,000 ratings.<sup>[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/condorman)</sup> Its Metacritic Metascore is 46 from 7 reviews, ranging from a 70 from [The Globe and Mail](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-globe-and-mail), which called it \"sheer amiability,\" to a 30 from Time Out.<sup>[10](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082199/criticreviews/)</sup> IMDb users rate it 5.7 out of 10.<sup>[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082199/?bypassRefViewPref=1)</sup>\n\n## Related media and afterlife\n\nA three-issue comic book adaptation was published in 1981; the Comic-Con International souvenir book describes it as by Mary Carey and Dan Spiegle, and also notes three 1981 issues drawn by Frank Bolle based on the film.<sup>[11](https://comic-con-prod-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/CCI23_SouvenirBook.pdf)</sup> Disney promoted the film by giving out masks at the 1982 Comic-Con.<sup>[11](https://comic-con-prod-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/CCI23_SouvenirBook.pdf)</sup>\n\nThe character has resurfaced occasionally. A Condorman toy makes a cameo in the 2011 Pixar short *Toy Story Toons: Small Fry*, and after Disney purchased [Marvel Comics](https://www.edgepedia.org/marvel-comics) in 2009, *Amazing Spider-Man* editor [Stephen Wacker](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-wacker) publicly lobbied to bring Condorman into the [Marvel Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/marvel-universe).<sup>[9](https://13thdimension.com/when-disney-failed-superheroes-1981s-condorman-45-years-later/)</sup> The film has been noted for its absence from Disney+.<sup>[12](https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/best-movies-missing-from-disney-plus/)</sup>\n\n## References\n\n1. [Condorman (1981), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN)\n2. [Condorman, Disney Movies](https://movies.disney.com/condorman)\n3. [Condorman (film), D23](https://d23.com/a-to-z/condorman-film/condorman-1180w-600h/)\n4. [Condorman (1981), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082199/?bypassRefViewPref=1)\n5. [Condorman, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/condorman)\n6. [Condorman critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/condorman/critic-reviews/)\n7. [Condorman (1981), AFI Catalog synopsis and premiere details](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/56573-CONDORMAN?cp=1&cxt=Filmography2&pos=8&sid=967b42a8-976f-4b00-a284-3a7248491d9f&sr=0.12749018)\n8. [Condorman streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/condorman)\n9. [When Disney Failed Superheroes: 1981's CONDORMAN, 13th Dimension](https://13thdimension.com/when-disney-failed-superheroes-1981s-condorman-45-years-later/)\n10. [Condorman (1981) Metacritic reviews, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082199/criticreviews/)\n11. [Comic-Con International 2023 Souvenir Book](https://comic-con-prod-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/sites/4/2023/10/CCI23_SouvenirBook.pdf)\n12. [The best movies missing from Disney+, Digital Trends](https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/best-movies-missing-from-disney-plus/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works) › Science fiction and fantasy films of the 1980s › Released 1980 to 1985*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n",
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 "credit": "\"Condorman\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/condorman. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.",
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 "speakable": "Condorman is a 1981 Walt Disney live-action comedy directed by Charles Jarrott, starring Michael Crawford as comic artist Woody Wilkins, who becomes his own superhero to help a Soviet spy defect; it flopped, costing Disney a $9.5 million write-off."
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