What was supposed to be one of Disney’s powerhouse films for the summer has quickly become a growing headache for theatrical release. Mulan, the twice-delayed live-action reimagining of a Disney animated movie, is now delayed indefinitely. We also have news on major changes to Disney’s theatrical distribution schedules for other high profile films.
Mulan’s Release Paused Indefinitely
Mulan was originally scheduled for a March 27 release. Once the COVID-19 outbreak necessitated the shutdown of all unessential businesses, the film’s release was pushed to July 24, and finally August 21. But as of today, the film has been taken off the table for the foreseeable future. According to a statement from Disney,
“Over the last few months, it’s become clear that nothing can be set in stone when it comes to how we release films during this global health crisis, and today that means pausing our release plans for ‘Mulan’ as we assess how we can most effectively bring this film to audiences around the world,”
Delays to Disney’s Distribution Schedule
Movie theaters are among the businesses hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic. Theaters have been closed since mid-March and haven’t had much traction for reopening due to the continued rise in COVID cases. Movie theaters, studios, and exhibitors had hopeful aspirations of life resuming as normal (or some semblance of it) starting in July, but those hopes appeared to have been too lofty. Additionally, new content from Hollywood has similarly been delayed due to an industry-wide shutdown.
“There is no one more disappointed about this delay than me,” Director James Cameron said in an Instagram post. “What most of you likely don’t know is that the pandemic is still preventing us from being allowed to recommence most of our virtual production work on stage in Los Angeles. That work is just as critical to the films as the live-action work.”
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Last year, Disney announced all of its upcoming movies through 2027, but they (like many other entertainment giants) have needed to make changes to their distribution plans. This change includes pushing back the release of anticipated films like upcoming Avatar films and additional Star Wars projects by at least one year. Here are some of the affected films:
- “Avatar 2” delayed to Dec. 16, 2022
- “Avatar 3” now scheduled for Dec. 20, 2024
- Untitled Star Wars to release Dec. 19, 2025
- “Avatar 4” coming Dec. 18, 2026
- Untitled Star Wars shifted to Dec. 17, 2027
- “Avatar 5” anticipated Dec. 22, 2028
Other notable changes to Disney’s calendar include:
- “The Personal History of David Copperfield” (Searchlight) moves two weeks to Aug. 28, 2020.
- “Death on the Nile” (20th Century) shifts two weeks to Oct. 23, 2020.
- “The Empty Man” (20th Century) moves to Dec. 4, 2020.
- “The French Dispatch” (Searchlight), previously dated Oct. 16, 2020, is now unset.
- “Antlers” (Searchlight) is now dated Feb. 19, 2021.
Ridley Scott’s “The Last Duel” (20th Century), which was scheduled for a limited release on Dec. 25, 2020, is now scheduled to open on Oct. 15, 2021. Also, an Untitled Disney Live-Action film is now scheduled for December 17, 2021, a date that was previously held by “Avatar 2.”
Let’s Hear From You
The shutdown has affected numerous industries, particularly anything related to entertainment. Do you think that Disney should keep Mulan on an indefinite theatrical release until theaters reopen or should they go the route of Artemis Fowl and release directly to Disney+? Will the delays for Avatar sequels and additional Star Wars movies dwindle audience interest or perhaps even make them stronger? When would you feel comfortable returning to a movie theater? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
