Mulan's release date is delayed again, and the movie is now scheduled to open in August 2020. Disney's upcoming live-action remake was one of the first films to be impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. It was originally supposed to premiere in March, just a couple of weeks after the COVID-19 outbreak took a turn for the worse. With movie theaters around the world closed in an effort to prevent further spread of the virus, Disney had no choice but to push Mulan back. They settled on a July 2020 debut.
At the time Mulan moved to July, there was hope that would be when things were getting back to some semblance of normalcy. Unfortunately, coronavirus remains a very serious issue and multiple states are seeing increases in cases after reopening. Due to the recent spike, it's highly unlikely movie theaters will be allowed to open in major markets in July. Warner Bros. responded by moving Tenet to August, and now Disney has followed suit by delaying Mulan for a second time.
Per Variety, Mulan is now scheduled to come out on August 21, 2020, a little over a week after Tenet's new date. The outlet says Disney was leery about having the first big movie out of the gate in the midst of the pandemic.
Much like the case of Tenet, Disney's decision to delay Mulan makes financial sense. The film's production budget is reportedly $200 million, meaning it needs to have a strong theatrical run to turn a profit. In order for that to happen, the studio has to know it can release the movie in the biggest cities. If theaters in New York or Los Angeles aren't allowed to open next month, it would mean Mulan would be in danger of bombing and losing Disney money. Shifting the movie around the calendar isn't a cheap proposition (Disney's already poured a considerable amount into Mulan marketing and will need to spend more), but that is the lesser of two evils when the other option is a massive tentpole flopping. Releasing a would-be blockbuster on-demand isn't a viable option, especially since it's unknown how fruitful that model really is.
The double whammy of Tenet and Mulan getting delayed again is tough news for theater owners. Major American chains like AMC Theatres and Regal were hoping to open their doors come July, screening some key new releases. Now, they know there won't be anything of note coming out until mid-August - and that's if these tentpoles aren't pushed back again. Movie theaters are set to lose billions in 2020, so they were looking forward to having Tenet and Mulan next month. Theaters can show classic movies as a way to drum up some business, but that isn't the same as a new blockbuster viewers can only see on the big screen. Hopefully, things improve in the near future and theaters can safely start showing new movies in the late summer and early fall.
Source: Variety
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