As many know, people are in a state of panic because of the coronavirus. Many schools have been shut down and other activities involving close interactions have been advised against such as, flying, use of public transportation, and any gathering with large numbers of people. This includes going to the movies. 

Going to the movies is a fun activity that anyone can enjoy which is why I find it very upsetting that the theater is a risky place to be at this time. Unfortunately, those waiting for any of the big March and April blockbusters like Mulan, No Time To Die, and A Quiet Place: Part ll will be disappointed to learn that most of them have been delayed indefinitely. Keep in mind that all of these films have finished shooting, and the distributors are just holding off on a wide release. 

This first came to my attention when John Krasinski, the director of A Quiet Place and it’s new sequel A Quiet Place: Part ll, announced via Instagram that his new movie A Quiet Place: Part ll would be delayed. On March 12 he posted on Instagram.

“One of the things I’m most proud of is that people have said our movie is one you have to see all together. Well due to ever-changing circumstances of what’s going on in the world around us, now is clearly not the right time to do that. As insanely excited as we are for all of you to see this movie, I’m going to wait to release the film till we can all see it together,” Krasinski said.

I started to notice a trend because just a few hours later, it was brought to my attention that the next film in the James Bond franchise, No Time To Die, had also been delayed because of the coronavirus. It was no secret that the film was being delayed, but on March 4, 2020, Variety reported that the movie No Time To Die  “will be postponed until November; the James Bond sequel’s backers announced on Wednesday,” but that was just the beginning.

Disney soon announced that it’s three major upcoming films New Mutants, Mulan, and Antlers are to be delayed until further notice. No release date has been set for any of those films as of now. 

I think that the halting of these films is a good idea because people have been waiting a long time for some of the films and it would be better to watch them without the worry or anxiety caused by the spread of the coronavirus, and it would be unfair for one country to get a certain film when it can’t be released in another country due to safety restrictions.  

It is also fair that people want to see the movies when they were originally set to release. If they were planning on watching it opening weekend they could be pretty disappointed. Movies are expected to release on time and I can see why delaying a film due to something like the coronavirus could make some people upset. However, there are some films that are sticking to their original release dates. Films like Bloodshot and Black Widow are sticking to their spring release dates. Black Widow will be released on April 24 and Bloodshot will be released on March 13. 

Overall, it was a good call to delay some of the big March/April movie releases. It makes it safer and will let people fully enjoy the films when they come out. I hope waiting it out makes a difference to the audience and the films themselves. People go to the theater to relax and have a good time and I think it would be wrong if a studio were to release a film during this pandemic just to ensure its high box office grossing. The film distributors could have distributed the movies in different countries based on the levels of coronavirus outbreaks to ensure a safe and successful release schedule. But it seems more reasonable to wait until this virus is secure.