Another Wonder Woman 1984 delay could cause a delay in release for Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune’
With select movie theaters operating at 25% capacity due to the ongoing pandemic. Film studios are having a very hard time getting their tentpole films out to theaters and are refusing to release these tentpole films on PVOD. With Wonder Woman’s October 2nd release date looming, a new report from Deadline suggests that Warner Bros. is looking to delay the film’s release once again. While no specific release window has been revealed, since the film has yet to be officially delayed (again), the film is expected to make a shift to November and release that month if slots are available.
A few weeks ago, during DC Fandome, DC Films and Warner Bros. released the second official trailer for Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 1984. By the time the trailer came to a close, fans were very keen on looking for a cemented release date but none was shown in those closing seconds. Leaving many fans and news outlets wondering if the film would indeed release on October 2nd.
Wonder Woman was initially slated to release in November 2019 but the film was delayed until June 5, 2020, in order to give Patty Jenkins more time to complete the film and get the film as perfect as possible. Unfortunately for Patty Jenkins and Warner Bros., and unexpected pandemic put an extra dent in their delays having the film being delayed to August, then being pushed back again to October. While Patty Jenkins has openly welcomed the delays which have allowed her and her production team to really iron out the wrinkles of the film. I’m sure these extra delays come with an extra load of stress.
In Deadline’s report, the biggest film markets like New York and California are not opening theaters until sometime in October. But with a second wave of the coronavirus waiting to arrive, it’s very possible that these high target markets on each respective coast might not open up at all. This creates several issues and adds an extra layer of concern for Warner Bros. who being hit hard with the pandemic.
Another delay for Wonder Woman which would put the film to release in November or December, which in turn would delay Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune’ out of 2020 entirely and into a possible release window in 2021. With ‘Tenet’ hitting select movie theaters and reeling in only $20.2 million over Labor Day weekend. Warner Bros. has taken a massive hit in terms of box office sales with a film that cost the studio $200 million to make.
WB has been adamant about not releasing their tentpole films in PVOD format and are dedicated to releasing these blockbuster films in theaters where they are meant to be seen. While that’s more than understandable holding on to a film for the sake of holding onto it for a theatrical experience when there’s a small guarantee that all theaters will open within the next few weeks has been proven to be a costly mistake.
Many fans have clamored and essentially demanded that these films be released in PVOD format like Universal’s ‘Trolls: World Tour’, ‘The Invisible Man’, ‘Bloodshot’, and most recently Disney’s ‘Mulan’. Out of all of these aforementioned titles, ‘Trolls: World Tour’ has been the only PVOD title that has seen massive success without a theatrical release. I only say ‘Trolls: World Tour’ because Disney has not released sales numbers for ‘Mulan’. All the other titles have seen theatrical releases even if they were in theaters briefly.
Things are a bit more doom and gloom that studios are making it out to be and its a bit concerning. While some moviegoers are ok with going to theaters, the majority of moviegoers are not so keen or feel safe enough to expose themselves for a proper movie-going experience.
While no new release date has been given to Wonder Woman just yet, expect another delay. One can hope for a PVOD release but I wouldn’t expect it for films like Wonder Woman or even Dune. There’s too much money to be made and WB is refusing to lose anymore, understandably so.
Source: Deadline
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