Amid coronavirus concerns, Universal announced the release date for its next Bond film No Time To Die has been delayed from April to later this year. Considering Daniel Craig’s last mission as 007 is the most expensive for the franchise, the move to November will likely turn out to be a smart business decision for the studio. But that means Godzilla vs. Kong’s competition is coming served up shaken not stirred.
Now Warner Bros.’ MonsterVerse film will hit theaters just five days before the release of No Time To Die. Both tentpole action flicks, the two releases will be in direct competition. Godzilla vs. Kong does have a tad bit of upper-hand with it opening Friday, November 20, the weekend before No Time to Die. But Bond 25 arrives in the U.S. on Wednesday, Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving, and we’re talking about the first James Bond movie in five years, and the end of an era.
The MonsterVerse just doesn’t have as good a track record. Last spring’s Godzilla: King of Monsters drummed up just $386 million globally, while Daniel Craig’s previous outing, 2015’s Spectre made $880 million both on production budgets of around $200 million. Plus, last time 007 had this long of a gap between films (with 1995’s Goldeneye), it broke box office records for the property.
November is famously a busy season, but this match-up certainly inspires the most competition. On the 6th, Marvel’s Eternals is hitting theaters but it has a couple weeks of room to get things started before Godzilla vs. Kong, and then No Time To Die makes its suave entrance. Disney Animation’s Raya and the Last Dragon is also a big release coming on the same day as Bond, but as a bit of more family-friendly counter-programming to 007 action.
The Warner Bros. blockbuster features a crossover between King Kong of 2017’s Skull Island and Godzilla of 2019’s King of Monsters, with the two giant creatures going head-to-head in an event fight. Adam Wingard’s movie was originally set to come out next weekend until the studio delayed it eight months at the end of 2019.
Will Godzilla vs. Kong switch up its release date again in reaction? Forbes speculates that Warner Bros. could very well decide to hold its ground and maintain trust in the MonsterVerse movie, or it may very well switch up the date once again. There are also worries that, now that No Time To Die has made an executive decision to change its date to cater to global concerns, what’s stopping more blockbusters from following its lead?
Releases such as Black Widow and F9 will reportedly stay on schedule. Godzilla vs. Kong recently had its first test screening and its director called it “a great day” for the pair of monsters. The movie is said to be one hour and 45 minutes – much shorter than your typical action movie of its caliber.
What do you think? Should Godzilla vs. Kong retreat from its planned release date of Nov. 20 following No Time To Die’s new date of Nov. 12 U.K./Nov. 25 U.S.? Sound off in the comments and vote in our poll below.
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