Wonder Woman 1984 is the latest film to be delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Though unlike other postponed films, this delay is not indefinite. Patty Jenkins‘ sequel has been moved from its original June 5 release to Friday, August 14. Naturally, this move has caused a domino effect to other Warner Bros. releases.
The studio has delayed animated movie Scoob! indefinitely – originally set to arrive in May – as well as James Wan‘s upcoming horror movie Malignant, which was dated for August 14, the spot now occupied by Wonder Woman 1984. The studio has also removed Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s In The Heights from its release schedule. That was due for a late June release.
Obviously, moving Wonder Woman 1984 to a new release signals that the studio has zero intention of releasing the film to on demand services in lieu of a theatrical run. Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich said as much in a statement:
“When we greenlit Wonder Woman 1984, it was with every intention to be viewed on the big screen and are excited to announce that Warner Bros. Pictures will be bringing the film to theatres on August 14. We hope the world will be in a safer and healthier place by then”.
It’s a conservative push from the studio, only about two months. There’s obviously hope that by that time, restrictions will have been at least partially lifted and one of their tentpole blockbusters can have a moderately normal release. We’ll have to wait and see what the state of the world looks like at that point.
The entire 2020 release schedule is in flux right now due to the ongoing pandemic. We’ll see if Wonder Woman 1984 can hit its optimistic new date, or whether further delays could be required. If so, this could be the first year without a summer blockbuster season since the birth of the blockbuster with Jaws back in 1975.
#Peace.Love.WonderWoman1984
