The James Bond movie "No Time to Die" was slated fo release in next month, but the producers announced last week that it would be pushed back to November "after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace."
It will now be released in the UK on November 12 and in the US on November 25. The studio, MGM, "will likely take a $30 million to $50 million hit," according to The Hollywood Reporter, but the damage could have been worse if the movie was released amid coronavirus concerns and theater closures.
This is the third time the movie has been delayed. It was originally set for release in November 2019, then pushed back to February and again to April as director Cary Joji Fukunaga replaced Danny Boyle and "Fleabag" creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge came on to polish the script.
Production on Paramount's seventh "Mission: Impossible" movie was halted last month in Italy as concerns over the coronavirus grew. The coronavirus has killed nearly 500 people in Italy and infected 9,000.
The movie is set to be released in July 2021 and Paramount has not announced any changes.
"Sonic the Hedgehog" is a surprise hit, with $140 million in the US and $295 million worldwide. That's good considering the movie's China release has been put on hold indefinitely as China's 70,000 theaters remain closed due to coronavirus concerns.
Sony's "Bloodshot," starring Vin Diesel as the Valiant Comics superhero, hits theaters in the US and other markets this week. But like any movie being released amid the coronavirus outbreak, it won't be released in China as planned and Diesel canceled a promotional tour in the region.
Diesel is popular in China, and not just for his mega-successful "Fast and Furious" movies. Diesel's last non-"Fast" or Marvel flick, "XXX: The Return of Xander Cage," grossed $164 million in China (it made just $45 million in the US). For comparison, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" only earned $20.5 million in China.
Disney's live-action "Mulan" remake is set for release in the US and other markets on March 27. But China, where it won't be released quite yet, was expected to be its biggest market "given the film's cultural roots and Disney's own success with previous films there," Boxoffice.com chief analyst Shawn Robbins told Business Insider.
The movie cost a hefty $200 million to produce, so a delayed China release could be hard to recover from.
"The longer this tragic situation continues, the greater the impact will be on all of the studios, their movies, and indeed all of the arts in China," Paul Dergarabedian, the Comscore senior media analyst, said.
Sony has pushed the European release of "Peter Rabbit 2" from March 27 to August 7, according to The Hollywood Reporter. It was set to debut in the US April 3, but that has been delayed to an unspecified date after its debut in Europe.
2018's "Peter Rabbit" made $351 million worldwide and $115 million in the US.
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