Mulan Delayed Indefinitely – Pulled from Schedule
The Walt Disney Company seemingly can’t catch a break with regards to Coronavirus.
The pandemic has impacted several of Disney’s core businesses, including its movie studio’s theatrical releases.
A few months ago, I wondered whether Disney should bite the bullet and release Mulan on Disney+.
The movie executives at the studio desired a theatrical release for the Mulan remake, counting on medical experts to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Sadly, this hasn’t happened, as Coronavirus cases are at historic highs in July.
Earlier this week, AMC Theatres confirmed that it would delay the reopening of its movie theaters.
Also, the highly anticipated Christopher Nolan movie, Tenet, received an indefinite delay.
So, the writing has been on the wall about will happen next.
Sure enough, Walt Disney Pictures has pulled Mulan from the release schedule.
About the Decision
Variety broke this story and provided an explanation from an unnamed Disney spokesperson:
“Over the last few months, it’s become clear that nothing can be set in stone when it comes to how we release films during this global health crisis, and today that means pausing our release plans for ‘Mulan’ as we assess how we can most effectively bring this film to audiences around the world.”
Remarkably, this turn of events represents the fourth time that Mulan will have a release date.
Disney initially slotted the film for release on March 27th. After the pandemic began, studio executives delayed Mulan until July 24th and then August 21st.
AMC’s announcement rendered an August 21st release impossible, at least in the United States.
Meanwhile, Chinese movie theaters only reopened this week, albeit to extremely sluggish ticket sales.
Disney remade Mulan with an eye on its box office appeal in the country where the story occurs.
So, Mulan’s prospects appear bleak in the United States right now and only marginally better in China.
At this point, the movie industry appears stuck in an impossible situation, and Disney’s caught in the middle.
You should not act surprised if Disney moves Mulan into 2021.
For now, Disney execs are unwilling to commit to any date, which is understandable given what’s happened.
However, the company appears reluctant to skip the theatrical window altogether for Mulan, a project that studio executives had expected to earn $1 billion.
What happens next? Stay tuned to MickeyBlog to find out.
