'No Time To Die' Now Set For A Fall Release Again
In a move that should not surprise anyone, MGM/Eon will change No Time to Die's release date. The movie was to release over Easter weekend on April 2. Now it will release in the fall of 2021. At least, that's what we hope will happen.
Original Moves
Last July, I reported that the film's release moved from its original April 2020 release date to the fall of 2020. This move was, of course, thanks to the pandemic's initial onslaught. We all confidently thought that the pandemic would be at least under control by that fall.
In mid-2020, industry analysts such as Doug Cruetz were already predicting that the theaters would not resume normal operations until mid-2021. His rationale was that studios would not be interested in releasing their larger budget movies into capacity-constrained theaters. Studios wanted the highest possible gross.
Some would say the studios were too optimistic, others considered them naïve. To everyone's collective surprise, theaters eventually reopened across the country to limited capacity. In that brief moment that they were open, we experienced a few films meant for the large screen, such as Tenet. Theater chains re-released older films on the big screen at reduced prices to fill their programming gaps. This halcyon period lasted only for a short time.
Coronavirus cases climbed once more in the fall. Though there are regions of the country and world where theaters are open with limited capacity, for the most part, they remain closed.
A few studios like Disney had the advantage of owning their streaming service. The studio leveraged Disney+ to release several of their movies, including Mulan and Soul. Mulan was one of the last films to have a large-scale, in-person premiere on March 9, 2020, before the world shut down. After multiple delays, it finally debuted on Disney+ on September 4, 2020.
2021 And Beyond
As we march into 2021, studios are still optioning to keep their big-budget blockbusters for theatrical releases. MGM is handling the domestic release of No Time to Die. Universal is tasked with managing the foreign market release.
Both the US and UK markets are critical to the success of this Bond film. Both countries are in the midst of the worrisome surges of the pandemic. Additionally, the UK has a new variant of the coronavirus. The delay for both countries to return to a sense of normalcy will not occur until cases go down and the vaccine is well distributed.
Earlier this week, the Dutch site BN DeStem reported that the Cary Joji Fukunaga helmed project was moving its release weekend, citing Dutch exhibitor Carlo Lambregts as the story's source. While Lambregts claimed November was the release month, this is not yet confirmed. Other sources, including franchise promotional partners, reconfirmed that the film will move to autumn of this year. However, they did not give an exact month.
Why Not Stream It?
If you are wondering why the film has not been released virtually, MGM tried. The studio screened the movie for several streaming services, asking $600 million for the opportunity. However, none of the primary services were willing to pay that hefty price for the privilege.
This film, in particular, is very special to MGM and the Bond movie series. The Bond franchise itself is a moneymaking machine for MGM. It is Daniel Craig's final turn as the famous 007. Understandably, MGM wants to give Craig the proper big-screen send-off he deserves.
Craig has given them so much. He was part of one of the most successful 007 films of all time, Skyfall. That 2012 release grossed $1.1 billion. The last Craig-led Bond film, Spectre, grossed a very respectable $880.6 million in 2015.
Those who have seen No Time to Die say it is absolutely worth waiting for a big-screen premiere. I am willing to wait for this one too. Daniel Craig deserves a grand farewell.
Source(s): Deadline