The Walt Disney Company Executive Chairman Bob Iger revealed more films that were delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic could go directly to Disney Plus.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic forced major studios, including Disney, to delay the release of their respective summer 2020 projects. While some studios have opted to push back their films to the following year, Disney recently announced its readjusted release slate and while Artemis Fowl will now go directly to Disney Plus, other tentpole projects were moved to new slots for a theatrical debut.
Of course, not all projects were given new release dates and while the live-action remake of Mulan was pushed back to July 2020, some are unsure if cinemas will be able to re-open by then if moviegoers will even feel safe immediately gathering together in a theater once the crisis has subsided. During an interview with Barron’s, Executive Chairman Bob Iger revealed that more titles could end up directly on Disney Plus, but tentpole films will simply be given new release dates if necessary:
“In terms of movies going ahead after Artemis, there may be a few more that we end up putting directly onto Disney+, but for the most part a lot of the big tentpole Disney films, we’ll simply wait for slots. In some cases we’ve announced new ones already, but later on in the calendar.”
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The aforementioned release date shuffle is just the latest impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on Hollywood. As previously mentioned, theaters in multiple countries are closing and many studios that have decided to make certain titles available for digital rental or purchase early while postponing the theatrical debuts of others. Furthermore, Disney recently suspended or postponed production on several projects, including the live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, Peter Pan & Wendy, the new Honey, I Shrunk the Kids sequel, the Home Alone reboot, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, and Guillermo del Toro’s Nightmare Alley.
Stay tuned for the latest news on Disney as it develops.
Source: Barron’s
