Mulan and Black Widow Will Come Out in Theaters Later This Year…But Two Blockbusters Won’t!
Walt Disney Pictures finally decided how to proceed with several of its impending tentpole movie releases. The news is both good and bad for Disney movie lovers.
Blockbuster Delays
Mulan will receive a theatrical release despite some debate about whether the live-action remake should go straight to digital. The new release date for Mulan is July 24th. If that date sounds familiar, it should.
Disney has delayed Jungle Cruise, the live-action adaptation of the beloved Disney theme park attraction, until July 30, 2021. Yes, that’s a delay of a year and a week.
Many MCU Changes
COVID-19 has forced film executives to make some tough decisions about upcoming releases. Disney’s strategy involves a domino effect on its releases.
The other major change involves two Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) titles, Black Widow and The Eternals. Black Widow will now debut on November 6th, a date that The Eternals had previously held.
The Eternals will now come out on February 12, 2021, the former release date for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. So, Shang-Chi drops back to May 7, 2021, the former date for Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which now debuts on November 5, 2021.
Yes, that causes another delay for a Thor sequel. Thor: Love and Thunder will have to wait until February 18, 2022, although I maintain this one should come out on Valentine’s Day. Disney will have plenty of time to appreciate it’s a fun date movie and move it up if desired.
Black Panther 2 is the only MCU movie that will keep its release date, which is May 8, 2022. However, Captain Marvel 2 will now move up to July 8, 2022.
Other Disney Release Date Changes
Two other Disney movies have also received new release dates. Free Guy moves out of the summer until the holiday season. Its new release date switches from July 3rd to December 11th, but at least it stays in 2020.
The final change involves Wes Anderson’s next movie, The French Dispatch, which moves back from July 14th (Bastille Day) to October 16th, a more fitting date for an awards contender anyway.
West Side Story and Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel will keep their dates on December 18th and December 25th this year.
So, we now know how Disney will approach theatrical releases through the end of 2021, although all of this remains fluid. Disney has yet to announce new dates for Antlers, The New Mutants, The Personal History of David Copperfield, or Woman in the Window.
