NO TIME TO DIE Delayed Until 2021; Regal Closing All U.S. Theaters After 007 News; James Cameron & Others Ask Congress to Save Theaters

No Time To Die Release Delayed, Regal is Closing US Theaters, Directors Ask Congress for Theater Help

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and United Artists Releasing have delayed the theatrical release date of No Time To Die because of Cornovirus (Covid-19) and the lack of movie theaters being open. No Time To Die will now be released on April 2, 2021. No Time To Die was formerly to be released on November 20, 2020.

MGM released this statement about the delay:

“MGM, Universal and Bond producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, today announced the release of No Time To Die, the 25th film in the James Bond series, will be delayed until 2 April in order to be seen by a worldwide theatrical audience. We understand the delay will be disappointing to our fans but we now look forward to sharing No Time To Die next year”

This is the same release weekend as The Fast and the Furious 9. One has to wonder why MGM would choose a date occupied by such a big film but they have done so. The first film to blink is The Fast and the Furious 9. Universal Pictures is moving their release date for F9 to May 28, 2021.

The Effect of No Time To Die’s New Theatrical Release Date

Cineworld is closing all of its 543 Regal Cinemas in the United States and all of its 128 theater locations in the United Kingdom and Ireland in response to No Time To Die no longer opening in 2020. That will effect around 28,000 people in the U.S. and around 5,500 people in the U.K.

We have found out vital information about our jobs from the media throughout the pandemic. Workers have been left out of discussions that should’ve included our voices. However, in this case it goes beyond belief. To find out you may no longer have a job from the media is awful.

— Cineworld Action Group (@cineactiongroup) October 3, 2020

National Association of Theatre Owners President and CEO John Fithian had this to say about the situation in general:

“If we don’t have any movies until we’re fully vaccinated as a world, a lot of the theater companies are going to be gone and the theaters themselves won’t be there. So your infrastructure to play your movies and get grosses will not be the same. This idea of waiting out the pandemic to make your movies more profitable doesn’t make sense to me. There won’t be as much of an industry left to play your movies in if you do that.”

Film Directors React to Movie Theaters Closing

Film directors see the way the wind is blowing with movie theaters during the age of Covid and are using their celebrity (and the power of the pen) to ask the United States through Congress and the CARES Act for help on behalf of the movie theater industry.

Here is their letter Congress:

Dear Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, and Leader McCarthy:

Thank you for your leadership at this challenging time for our country. As you consider forthcoming COVID-19 relief legislation, we ask you to prioritize assistance for the hardest-hit industries, like our country’s beloved movie theaters.

No doubt you are hearing from many, many businesses that need relief. Movie theaters are in dire straits, and we urge you to redirect unallocated funds from the CARES Act to proposals that help businesses that have suffered the steepest revenue drops due to the pandemic, or to enact new proposals such as the RESTART Act (S. 3814/H.R. 7481). Absent a solution designed for their circumstances, theaters may not survive the impact of the pandemic.

The pandemic has been a devastating financial blow to cinemas. 93% of movie theater companies had over 75% in losses in the second quarter of 2020. If the status quo continues, 69% of small and mid-sized movie theater companies will be forced to file for bankruptcy or to close permanently, and 66% of theater jobs will be lost. Our country cannot afford to lose the social, economic, and cultural value that theaters provide.

The moviegoing experience is central to American life. 268 million people in North America went to the movies last year to laugh, cry, dream, and be moved together. Theaters are great unifiers where our nation’s most talented storytellers showcase their cinematic accomplishments. Every aspiring filmmaker, actor, and producer dreams of bringing their art to the silver screen, an irreplaceable experience that represents the pinnacle of filmmaking achievement.

As well as their critical cultural impact, theaters are economic force multipliers. In addition to the 150,000 employees working in cinemas nationwide, the industry supports millions of jobs in movie production and distribution, and countless others in surrounding restaurants and retailers that rely on theaters for foot traffic. Movie theaters are also leaders in employing underrepresented groups, including people with disabilities, senior citizens, and first-time job holders. Cinemas are an essential industry that represent the best that American talent and creativity have to offer. But now we fear for their future.

Theaters need specific relief targeted to their circumstances. We urge you to come together on a
bipartisan solution that provides this relief, by reallocating unspent funds from the CARES Act toward programs designed for industries like movie theaters, or by enacting new proposals such as the RESTART Act. These solutions would fulfill Congress’s intent in helping severely distressed sectors of the economy and ensure that our resources are focused on the industries that need them the most.

Please fight for our country’s beloved and essential cinemas by including relief for them in any
forthcoming COVID-19 legislation. Thank you for your leadership and for considering this request.

Sincerely,

John Fithian President & CEO, NATO
Russ Hollander, National Executive Director, DGA
Charles Rivkin, Chairman & CEO, MPA
Thomas Schlamme, President, DGA

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Wes Anderson, Judd Apatow, Jon Avnet, Sean Baker, Noah Baumbach, Michael Bay, Susanne Bier, Barbara Broccoli, James Cameron, Antonio Campos, Damien Chazelle, Jon M. Chu, Sofia Coppola, Alfonso Cuarón, Lee Daniels, Dean Devlin, Clint Eastwood, Andrew Erwin, Jon Erwin, Paul Feig, Shana Feste, Scott Frank, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Greta Gerwig, Evan Goldberg, Paul Greengrass, Leslie Greif, Luca Guadagnino, Catherine Hardwicke, Alma Har’el, Albert Hughes, Allen Hughes, Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, Barry Jenkins, Patty Jenkins, Rian Johnson, Miranda July, Nicole Kassell, Jon Landau, Francis Lawrence, Mimi Leder, Ang Lee, Rob Letterman, Shawn Levy, Richard Linklater, James Mangold, Sam Mendes, Adam McKay, Steve McQueen, Ted Melfi, Reed Morano, Christopher Nolan, David O. Russell, Todd Phillips, Guy Ritchie, Seth Rogen, Joachim Rønning, Michael R. Roskam, Martin Scorsese, M. Night Shyamalan, Zack Snyder, Steven Soderbergh, Joey Soloway, David E. Talbert, Betty Thomas, Emma Thomas, Liesl Tommy, Denis Villeneuve, Taika Waititi, James Wan, Lulu Wang, Chris Weitz, Paul Weitz, Michael G. Wilson, Edgar Wright, Joe Wright, Cathy Yan, David Yates.

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