No Time to Die, the latest James Bond movie and the last to star Daniel Craig as the iconic character, was one of the first big blockbuster movies to push back its release date. Originally set for April of this year, it shifted back into November even before American movie theaters were closed. And yet, the closer we got to November, the less it looked like the date was going to hold. And so it was little surprise last week when it was announced that No Time to Die was pushing back once again, this time to April 2021.
While perhaps unsurprising, the delay of No Time to Die was certainly disappointing for the fans who have been looking forward to the latest James Bonds outing, like our own Mike Reyes. Daniel Craig recently appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon where he spoke about the need to open the movie when the time is right, and that time is not right now. According to Craig...
We just want people to go and see this movie in the right way, the safe way. You know, cinemas all around the world are closed at the moment and we want to release the movie at the same time all around the world, this isn’t the right time.
While a lot of things have been progressing in the right direction as regards coronavirus, we're certainly not in a place where everything is good, and we're even less in a place where all people are comfortable. While many movie theaters are open, they're not seeing the sort of business that they need to see. Tenet's opening last month gave theaters the biggest box office in months, but it still wasn't at the levels that we're used to seeing. And it didn't result in other movies following suit and opening in theaters.
And the fact that no other major films have been released has had repercussions throughout the industry. Regal, the second-largest theater chain in the U.S. recently made the decision to shut down its theater later this week, since they're just not seeing enough business to justify staying open, a status which is guaranteed to continue with No Time To Die being delayed.
But of course, with a major theater chain closing down, it's possible some movies that were still planning to open in the next few months may now reconsider that. And the cycle continues.
We'll have to wait and see what happens with the few movies that are left. Warner Bros. recently pushed Dune off to 2021. There are still a few potentially big movies that are still slated to open in theaters this year, including Pixar's Soul in November and Wonder Woman 1984 in December. We'll have to wait and see if these movies still hold their ground or make the James Bond decision and wait until 2021.
