Wonder Woman 1984 has had such bad luck releasing in theaters, hasn't it? Initially meant to be released on December 13, 2019, WW84 was then moved up one month, but delayed to June 5, 2020 where it remained for quite a while until the pandemic hit. This forced the movie to be delayed again to August 14, 2020, but it wouldn't stop there.
It would later move to October 1, 2020, however, since this is an ongoing pandemic with no vaccine in sight, the release was delayed, once more with feeling, to December 25, 2020. Thus far, this date has remained, even after other DC movies around it were delayed earlier this week.
Warner Media Studios and Networks Group head Ann Sarnoff was adamant that Wonder Woman 1984 deserves "to be on the big screen," which is a sentiment shared by the director in a recent interview.
NEWS
In an interview with Reuters, Patty Jenkins reiterated that Warner Bros. is still not planning on releasing Wonder Woman 1984 through any streaming services like HBO Max or VOD at this time, despite the film's continuing delays due to the pandemic.
Some of this year’s major Hollywood films, including Walt Disney Co’s “Mulan,” skipped cinemas and went straight to streaming. Jenkins said that option is not under consideration for her sequel, “Wonder Woman 1984.”
Jenkins also voiced her worries about a future world in which the theatrical experience is non-existent:
“I don’t think any of us want to live in a world where the only option is to take your kids to watch a movie in your own living room and not have a place to go for a date.”
Finally, the filmmaker stated that she hopes Wonder Woman 1984 will be "one of the very first ones to come back [to theaters] and bring that into everyone’s life."
WHAT THIS MEANS
Well, the studio and director are certainly doubling down on Wonder Woman 1984 releasing in theaters, but whether it will be released on Christmas Day is anyone's guess at this point. However, using deductive reasoning, there is a very high chance that WW84 will be delayed to a 2021 date.
After all, by the time the film is planning to release in theaters, it would be nearly the height of flu season in the United States while still in the middle of a pandemic that won't have a viable and publicly available vaccine until at least mid-2021.
Fans should be prepared for Wonder Woman's sequel to be delayed once again in the coming weeks. While studios are trying to maintain optimism by planting release date flags for their films in the coming months, the reality is that these flags will continue to get shifted back until the vast majority of theaters are in full operation and the bulk of the movie-going audience feels comfortable heading back to cinemas.
