Sony, Warner Bros., and Disney All Announce Release Date Changes

COVID-19 pandemic pushes back major studios’ tentpoles

Sony Pictures is the recent studio to announce a slew of delayed releases in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a report in Variety on March 30, four of the studios’ upcoming films have been delayed by many months. These include:

• Ghostbusters: Afterlife (originally scheduled for July 10, 2020; moved to March 5, 2021)
• Morbius (originally scheduled for July 31, 2020; moved to March 19, 2021)
• Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway (originally scheduled for August 7, 2020; moved to January 15, 2021)
• Uncharted (originally scheduled for March 5, 2021; moved to October 8)

The film Greyhound, which was originally scheduled for June 12, 2020, has now been postponed indefinitely. An untitled Sony/Marvel collaboration originally scheduled for October 8, 2021, is also undated after Uncharted took its place.

The only Sony film to have its release date moved up in the wake of the pandemic is Fatherhood, which has been bumped up from January 15, 2021, to October 23, 2020. Sony’s fall and winter slate, including Monster Hunter, Connected, and Venom 2, has yet to announce any date changes.

Other Studios’ Postponements

Warner Bros. have also recently announced many release date setbacks. The DC summer flagship Wonder Woman 1984 has been delayed from June 5 to August 14, but many other titles have been delayed indefinitely. These include Scoob! (originally scheduled for May 15), In the Heights (originally scheduled for June 26), and Malignant (originally scheduled for August 14).

Disney has also announced new delays for their spring and summer slate. The MCU Phase Four kick-off Black Widow has been pulled from May 1 to an unspecified date later in the year. Searchlight’s The Personal History of David Copperfield has been pulled indefinitely from its May 8 stateside release. The last Fox 2000 title, The Woman in the Window, has also been postponed from its original May 15 date. These titles will join Disney’s previously-announced delays for Mulan, The New Mutants and Antlers.

The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has been delaying film releases and productions all across the board. Keep abreast on our reporting of the outbreak as it pertains to the entertainment industry here. You can also watch IndieWire’s listing for more frequent updates.

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