Back in March 2020, No Time to Die was one of the first major movies to push back its release in response to the global spread of the cornonavirus. Since then, the 25th James Bond movie has been delayed twice more, with the current plan still being for it to arrive in a little over a month. With the delta variant becoming a bigger concern in recent weeks, there’s been speculation about if No Time to Die could be pushed back yet again, but it’s been announced that Daniel Craig’s Bond swan song is sticking to its current release date… well, in two huge markets, that is.
Those in the United States will still get to see No Time to Die in theaters starting on October 8, while moviegoers in the United Kingdom will have access to even earlier with a September 30 release date. It was also announced that No Time to Die’s world premiere will take place on Tuesday, September 28 at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England, with some special guests attending. See for yourself:
However, for those of you living in Australia, you’ll have to wait a little longer for No Time to Die. Like in the U.K., the next James Bond movie was set to open in the Land Down Under on September 30, but according to THR, Universal Pictures (which is handling international distribution) has decided to push it to November 11 in response to the delta variant’s spread there. Sources also told the outlet that Universal could “tweak certain territories” with No Time to Die’s release like it did with F9, but as far as the U.S. and U.K. are concerned, Universal and MGM (which is handling the movie’s domestic release through United Artists Releasing) are “adamant” that the movie will stay put on its current dates.
With approximately 60% of Australia under lockdown and business not expected to reopen until the end of October, it’s understandable why No Time to Die’s release there was delayed. And the delta variant has certainly started to affect the film slate stateside, with Sony pushing Venom: Let There Be Carnage to October 15 and selling Hotel: Transylvania: Transformania to Amazon for over $100 million. But regarding No Time to Die, even if the powers-that-be wanted to push it back in the U.S. and U.K., it might not be able to anymore due to the fact that each delay is costing MGM millions.
So barring any drastic turn of events, it looks No Time to Die will arrive as currently scheduled in the U.S. and U.K., no matter what theatrical landscape looks like at the time. As far as domestic audiences go, the only other movie opening on October 8 is Jason Isaacs and Martha Plimpton’s Mass, but No Time to Die is also sandwiched between The Many Saints of Newark and The Addams Family 2 coming out the week prior, and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Halloween Kills, The Last Duel and Hard Luck Love Song arriving the following week.
As always, we here at CinemaBlend will keep you apprised of updates concerning No Time to Die and the entire James Bond franchise. Our 2021 release schedule is also available to peruse through if you’re curious about what’s coming out for the rest of the year.
Having kicked off his time as James Bond with 2006’s Casino Royale, Daniel Craig’s fifth and final 007 appearance sees the character clashing with Rami Malek’s Lyutsifer Safin five years after the events of Spectre. No Time to Die’s returning faces include Léa Seydoux, Naomie Harris, Jeffrey Wright, Ben Whishaw, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Fiennes and Rory Kinnear, while the newcomers alongside Malek include Ana de Armas, Lashana Lynch, David Dencik, Billy Magnussen and Dali Benssalah.
