The Thief and the Cobbler

The Thief and the Cobbler is a 1993 unfinished animated fantasy film co-written and directed by Richard Williams, who intended it to be his magnum opus and a milestone in the animated medium. Originally devised in the 1960s, the film was in and out of production for almost three decades due to independent funding and ambitiously complex animation. It was finally placed into full production in 1989 when Warner Bros. agreed to finance and distribute the film after his successful animation direction for Who Framed Roger Rabbit. When production went over budget and behind schedule, and Disney's similarly-themed Aladdin loomed as imminent competition, Williams was forced out and the film was heavily re-edited and cheaply finished by producer Fred Calvert as a mainstream Disney-style musical. It was eventually released by Allied Filmmakers on 23 September 1993 with the title The Princess and the Cobbler. Two years later, on 25 August 1995, Miramax Films, which was owned by Disney at the time, released another re-edit titled Arabian Knight. Both versions performed poorly at the box office and received mixed reviews.

Over the years, various companies and individuals, including Roy E. Disney, have discussed restoring the film to its original version. In 2013, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences archived Williams's own 35 mm workprint. Williams acknowledged the film's rehabilitated reputation, due to projects like The Recobbled Cut, a restoration by Garrett Gilchrist, and Persistence of Vision, a 2012 documentary by Kevin Schreck detailing the production.

The Thief and the Cobbler is one of the films with the longest production times. It is the final film for several actors and artists, including animators Ken Harris (died 1982), Errol Le Cain (died 1989), Emery Hawkins (died 1989), Grim Natwick (died 1990), and Art Babbitt (died 1992), and actors Felix Aylmer (died 1979), Eddie Byrne (died 1981), Clinton Sundberg (died 1987), Kenneth Williams (died 1988), Sir Anthony Quayle (died 1989), and Vincent Price (died 1993, one month after the film's initial release). It has maintained a cult following since its release.