The coronavirus pandemic has caused huge disruption to the entertainment industry, with films delayed and productions across the world forced to shut down.
Due to the pandemic, Marvel’s next blockbuster Black Widow was delayed from May to November 6th – though now rumours are swirling that the movie might be pushed back again.
Reportedly, Disney’s Soul (slated for a November 20th release) may also be delayed – or even released on Disney Plus. However, this claim is again unverified, with an insider at Disney apparently denying the claim.
Plus, highlighting the uncertainty in movie releases currently, there’s another rumour claiming that Black Widow has already begun the localization process. This means the film would be getting readied for international release.
At the moment, it’s impossible to predict what will happen with Black Widow – Disney could follow Warner Bros.’s example with Tenet and release Black Widow earlier internationally than domestically, or potentially roll Black Widow out in theaters overseas and utilize Disney Plus’s Premier Access in the US.
Moreover, UK film magazine Total Film recently unveiled a Black Widow cover – and Black Widow’s official Twitter account posted an image of the subscriber version of the cover. This promotion would suggest that the studio is still eyeing a November release for the movie, but if the film will open theatrically worldwide remains uncertain.
Warner Bros. have also delayed the release of Wonder Woman 1984 from October 2nd to Christmas Day, which means Dune is likely to be moved back from its December 18th release date as well.
At the moment, No Time to Die is holding firm to its November 20th slot.
Reportedly, Mulan brought in a 68% bump in subscriptions to Disney Plus – less than Hamilton, but still impressive considering Mulan came with a relatively steep price tag. With this and other major delays in mind, it makes sense for Disney to be considering their options with a tentpole like Black Widow – especially considering Mulan’s somewhat disappointing box office result in China.
Of course, if Black Widow is delayed again, this could have repercussions across the MCU’s release slate. We’ll have to wait and see if this becomes a possibility.
For the moment, you can stream Marvel movies with a Disney Plus subscription – which will also allow you access to Mulan.
