Coronavirus: All the Movies Delayed During Pandemic

The 2020 summer movie season has effectively been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Ever since Universal Pictures and MGM postponed the James Bond movie No Time To Die in March, the major Hollywood studios have been delaying the release of blockbusters originally planned to hit theaters this summer. Movie theater chains across the country, including AMC and Regal, have been closed while Americans focus on social distancing.

At first, the movie theater chains tried to stay open by limiting the number of tickets sold at screenings and assuring moviegoers that theaters were being cleaned as best as possible. However, on March 16, Regal announced all theaters would be closed indefinitely. Two days later, AMC followed suit, saying its theaters would be closed for six to 12 weeks.

There is no sign for when movie theaters could open again, especially after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended its social distancing guidelines through the end of April. The guidelines ask people to stay home if they feel sick, not to send children to school and to stay inside if anyone in a household has tested positive for coronavirus. Older people and those with serious underlying health conditions should also stay home. Meanwhile, state and local governments have issued strict “stay-at-home” orders, asking people to avoid going outside for nonessential business.

Here’s a look at the movies that have been postponed and delayed during the coronavirus pandemic.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife

Ghostbusters fans were hoping to see Jason Reitman’s vision of the franchise on July 10. Sony moved the movie to March 5, 2021. The movie is set to follow the events of Ghostbusters II, ignoring the 2016 reboot now known as Ghostbusters: Answer The Call. Reitman is the son of the original Ghostbusters director, Ivan Reitman.

Uncharted

A movie based on the Uncharted video game franchise has been in development for years. It finally got off the ground this year, with Tom Holland starring. Production has been put on hold, so the movie will not meet the March 5, 2021 release date. It was pushed to Oct. 8, 2021.

No Time To Die

MGM and Universal were already in full marketing mode for the latest James Bond movie, No Time To Die, when they decided to postpone the film. It was originally supposed to be released in April, but has since been pushed to Nov. 25 in the U.S. The movie will be released early in the U.K. on Nov. 12, as past James Bond movies have.

Wonder Woman 1984

While there was talk about Warner Bros. releasing Wonder Woman 1984 digitally this summer, that could never have seriously been an option for the huge blockbuster. The studio originally planned to release the movie on June 5, but it has been pushed to Aug. 14.

Black Widow

Disney and Marvel’s Black Widow was scheduled to hit theaters on May 1. Disney has not announced a new release date. It will be the first Disney/Marvel Studios film since 2019’s Avengers: Endgame and was set to launch Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Top Gun: Maverick

Playing beach volleyball with friends does not count as social distancing, so it seems only fair that Top Gun: Maverick has been delayed. The Tom Cruise sequel, 30 years in the making, was going to open on June 24. Now, fans will fulfill their need for speed during the Christmas holiday. Paramount rescheduled it for Dec. 23, 2020.

A Quiet Place Part II

Just days before John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place Part II was supposed to open on March 20, Paramount pulled it from release. Paramount needed some extra time to reschedule it, and they finally decided on Sept. 4. The studio also delayed The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run from May 22 to July 31.

Minions: The Rise of Gru

Universal is going to have to wait a little longer before unleashing the yellow pill-shaped Minions onto the world again. The prequel Minions: The Rise of Gru was set to hit theaters on July 3. It is now set to open on July 2, 2021. Sing 2 was pushed from July 2, 2021 to Dec. 22, 2021. A film version of Wicked was supposed to open on Dec. 22, 2021, but has not been rescheduled.

Morbius

Sony also rescheduled Morbius, pushing it from July 31 to March 19, 2021. The movie stars Jared Leto as the titular vampire, originally introduced in Marvel’s Spider-Man comics. Sony had already started marketing the movie, as they released a trailer in January.

F9

The ninth Fast & Furious movie, simply titled F9, was supposed to be released in May. Universal has pushed the movie to April 2, 2021, which was the day Fast & Furious 10 was supposed to be released. The 10th film in the franchise has not been rescheduled yet.

Mulan and Other Live-Action Disney Movies

Disney has been forced to make several changes to its schedule. The live-action Mulan remake was scheduled to hit theaters on March 12, but has been delayed indefinitely. The New Mutants, which was supposed to be released by Fox in 2018, long before the Disney acquisition was finalized, was also delayed indefinitely. Disney also pushed back the release of the Guillermo Del Toro-produced horror movie Antlers, The Personal History of David Copperfield and The Woman in the Window, all Fox productions.

Photo credit: Paramount Pictures