Despite a whole slate of movies being delayed or taken off the release schedule altogether in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, one has escaped the cull and is still on track for its theatrical debut this October. According to CBM, Sony have retained a slot on October 2nd for the release of Venom 2, the Tom Hardy-fronted supervillain sequel, and better yet, the outlet states that the first trailer may be with us as soon as this week.
It remains to be seen if that’ll indeed be the case, but the film calendar for this spring has been totally wiped out now, with blockbusters like No Time to Die and Black Widow, the endlessly delayed superhero flick The New Mutants, and horror sequel A Quiet Place Part II all falling foul of the global lockdown. None except the Bond movie have been assigned new release dates, a move symptomatic of studio caution, with immense uncertainty lingering as to how long quarantine conditions will be maintained.
Whether the films still down for release this summer make it out on time is another matter. Tentpoles yet to be delayed beyond August include Wonder Woman 1984 (pushed back by 2 months), and the new Christopher Nolan epic Tenet, with Warner Bros. nervously awaiting the outcome of the pandemic before making more drastic decisions.
Hopefully by June the global crisis will have sufficiently eased for cinemas to open their doors once more. Nothing’s guaranteed, but here’s to cautious optimism that we might have some new movies to watch sooner rather than later. In particular, I hope Tenet doesn’t get delayed. The others I can take or leave, but where Nolan is concerned, take is the only option. Coronavirus, could you back off for the summer? It’d be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
As for Venom 2, it’s got much more leeway than anything coming out within the next 3 months, and with any luck, we’ll indeed get our first look at it this week.