Disney May Postpone the Theatrical Release of ‘Mulan‘ for a Second Time. After already being postponed 4 months from its original release date of March 27th to July 24th it appears Disney is considering moving the release date for the film a second time.
The primary reason, according to the Wall Street Journal, is the lack of attendance as theaters are beginning to re-open. Any film company would be hesitant to release a new film when audiences are at minimal capacity in theaters, so this doesn’t really come as a shock to those in the industry, but on the other side of the coin, a highly anticipated film could be just what audiences need to draw them back in to the theaters.
Photo Credit: Disney
Most theaters, such as AMC Theatres, Cinemark, and Regal Theaters, that have begun to re-open their doors have put new safety and cleanliness procedures in place to help moviegoers feel more at ease returning to public places, but that hasn’t stirred much confidence among potential audience members as confirmed COVID-19 cases begin to spike in many states that were the first to re-open. Most theaters that have resumed operation are not even featuring relatively new titles yet, and have begun showing iconic films such as Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, E.T., the original Star Wars trilogy, Lord of the Rings, and Jaws to help draw in crowds.
Jurassic Park even reached No. 1 at the box office over Father’s Day weekend, but only brought in approximately $517,600 USD with Jaws coming in second earning $516,300 USD. Both films earned more in their theatrical re-release than newer titles, The Invisible Man and Trolls World Tour. So it’s clear to see why Disney would be hesitant to release a film like Mulan that cost reportedly $200,000,000 in production costs alone.
Photo Credit: Disney
Another issue is the amount of theaters that remain closed due to the global pandemic. With key box office cities such as Los Angeles and New York City still shut down it doesn’t make sense to release a big title like this before most theaters have reopened, and that is VERY unlikely to happen by July 24th.
Though Disney has not shared a potential date for the second postponement it will be interesting to see when they choose to release due to the fact that they have several other films in the lineup that are bound to draw in audiences around the holidays at the end of the year. Fingers crossed though it won’t be in 2021!
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Featured Photo Credit: Disney
Source: WSJ
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