With the coronavirus still at large, not many studios seem willing to release big movies at theaters now, and the ones that do are rethinking things…
Well, that was quick. This morning, we wrote that Warner Bros. was considering delaying Wonder Woman 1984, which was supposed to hit theaters on October 2. Now, it’s official: Wonder Woman 1984, starring Gal Gadot as the truth-loving superhero, is set to come out in cinemas on December 25, Christmas Day.
Director Patty Jenkins made a statement to the fans: “First and foremost let me say how much Gal and I love all our devoted Wonder Woman fans around the world, and your excitement for ‘WW84’ couldn’t make us happier or more eager for you to see the movie. Because I know how important it is to bring this movie to you on a big screen when all of us can share the experience together, I’m hopeful you won’t mind waiting just a little bit longer. With the new date on Christmas Day, we can’t wait to spend the holidays with you!”
Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group chairman Toby Emmerich also weighed in: “Patty is an exceptional filmmaker and with Wonder Woman 1984 she has delivered an incredibly dynamic film that moviegoers of all ages around the world will absolutely love. We’re very proud of the film and look forward to bringing it to audiences for the holidays.”
This was all but inevitable after Warner Bros. released the spy thriller Tenet into theaters and it was met with a lukewarm box office. And how could it not be? While 70% of movie theaters are now open in the United States, cinemas in several big cities remain closed. And even if people do have access to a theater, plenty are wary to go back to the movies with the coronavirus still spreading throughout the country, and experts say they have good reason to be cautious. Sony even looked at what happened with Tenet and vowed not to make the same “mistake” with their slate of high-profile movies. No one really wants to release a movie into theaters right now.
In fact, Warner Bros. is one of the few big studios with tentpole films still lined up for the year. Disney has gone ahead and released Mulan straight to Disney+, and we wouldn’t be shocked if they did something similar with Black Widow, currently slated to debut on November 6. But in addition to Wonder Woman 1984, Warner Bros. is also putting out Dune on December 18.
Or at least, that’s what it’s planning right now. But things could change there, too, especially if they don’t want the Wonder Woman box office cannibalizing the Dune box office. We’ll see what happens…
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