In case you haven’t noticed, Hollywood is punting on summer movie season, with Universal Pictures the latest studio to waive the white flag. Two days after Sony delayedMorbiusandGhostbusters: Afterlife, Universal has delayed its summer tentpoleMinions: The Rise of Gru.
We already knew that theMinionssequel wouldn’t make its release date because Illumination Entertainment was forced to close its studio in France, so the animated film wouldn’t be completed in time for its July 3 release date.The Rise of Gruhas now been delayed a full year, and will now take overSing 2’s summer 2021 release date of July 16, 2025. That means thatSing 2, which also hails from Illumination, will arrive on Jun 17, 2025. The first film also opened in December and wound up grossing $634 million worldwide.
Meanwhile, with Hollywood production shut down indefinitely, Universal has also taken the opportunity to remove theWickedmovie from its release schedule. The musical adaptation of the hit Broadway show had been set for July 11, 2025, but it is now undated. That may be for the best, as it would be wise to wait and see how upcoming musicals such asWest Side StoryandIn the Heightsperform in the wake of Universal’sCatsdebacle. Universal is also focused on its feature adaptation ofDear Evan Hansen, and musicals aren’t like superhero movies. You can’t just release one every other weekend and expect them to do well. They have to be spaced out, and now, withWickeddelayed indefinitely, they will be.
While Disney, Warner Bros. and Paramount have yet to make formal announcements, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that every major studio will delay its summer tentpoles. you may safely assume that Warner Bros. will delayChristopher Nolan’sTenet– and possibly assign itDune’s December release date since the studio hasn’t started the marketing campaign forDenis Villeneuve’s new film. You can also bet thatTop Gun: Maverickwon’t fly into theaters this summer, and that Disney will end up shiftingJungle Cruiseand Pixar’sSoul. Again, nothing is official regarding any of those titles, but Hollywood is a town of copycats, so if two studios cancel July releases, rest assured that the others will follow.
For some good news in these dark times,click herefor an important message fromJohn Krasinskiand his old pal/bossSteve Carell.
