Tenet held out as long as it could, but last Friday, the latest Christopher Nolan flick was officially delayed, like so many movies have been lately. However, rather than be pushed back months or even a full year later, Warner Bros moved Tenet to July 31, meaning moviegoers will only have to wait an extra two weeks to see it. As it turns out though, Nolan and WB reportedly had some disagreements about Tenet’s new release date.
According to The New York Times (via The Playlist), Warner Bros was interested in moving Tenet much further back than just two weeks. With Tenet reportedly being made off a $200 million+ budget, the studio was concerned about its “investment” and wanted to open the movie at a time when it seemed like it could rake in as much money as possible.
Christopher Nolan, on the other hand, has been eager to deliver Tenet to the masses, as he wants the movie to help reopen the box office, which has been on ice over the last several months due to the current health crisis. And with Nolan being a firm advocate for the theatrical experience, that means shifting Tenet to a direct-to-VOD release, as has been done with the likes of Trolls World Tour, Scoob! and The King of Staten Island (to name a few) was off the table.
These conflicting views led to a “fraught moment” between Christopher Nolan and Warner Bros, but the latter eventually decided to just shift Tenet to the end of July due to Nolan being “a proven moneymaker” and wanting to “keep him happy.” Tenet now occupies the date where Sony’s Morbius was once slotted, and it’ll cap off July to provide some cinematic magic to enjoy before the summer wraps up.
Still, keep in mind that just because Tenet has a new release date doesn’t mean it couldn’t be moved again. Even with movie theaters starting to open back up, there’s still a lot of uncertainty in the air, and it’s possible the health crisis could result in their doors having to shut again. With so much riding on Tenet, it’s entirely possible that Warner Bros will decide that it needs to be delayed for even longer, even if that’s something Christopher Nolan wouldn’t like.
It is understandable though why the studio would be open to complying with Christopher Nolan’s request. Every movie he’s directed since Insomnia has involved Warner Bros in some form or fashion, and whether his features based off an original idea or an established property, you can count on them being big money earners. Nolan’s a filmmaker the WB executives would want to keep in good graces.
As for what we can expect from Tenet, it follows a secret agent who’s been tasked with stopping World War III, and a concept known as time inversion factors heavily into the mission. The movie stars John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Michael Caine, Kenneth Branagh, Dimple Kapadia and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more news concerning Tenet, and be sure to look through our 2020 release schedule to learn what other movies arrive later in the year.
