Disney delays Mulan, The French Dispatch indefinitely, Avatar sequels, Star Wars by a year

In more bad news for movie lovers, Disney has either pulled or delayed its slate of big budget blockbusters, including Mulan, Star Wars and the Avatar sequels.

In a further sign that there won’t be any blockbuster movies in cinemas anytime soon, Disney has delayed its slate of upcoming films, some of them indefinitely.

Live-action epic Mulan has been pulled from its late-August release berth and is now delayed indefinitely. The move follows Warner Bros’ decision earlier this week to remove Tenet from release in August.

Tenet and Mulan were seen as the two high-profile releases that would usher audiences make into cinemas globally but the perilous increase of coronavirus cases in the US has further delayed such plans. The majority of cinemas in the US, including the key market of California, remains closed.

Mulan was originally scheduled for release in late March and had been pushed back once already to August before this latest delay.

Mulan has been removed from Disney’s release schedule and is now undated

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In addition to Mulan, Disney has shuffled its roster of upcoming releases, including all the Avatar sequels. The first sequel to James Cameron’s financially successful CGI blockbuster was due for release in December, 2021 but will now be pushed back to December, 2022. Avatar 3, 4 and 5 have all been moved back a year from their original release dates.

Avatar 2 has resumed filming in New Zealand but its production in Los Angeles, where Cameron said in a statement will involve “virtual” stage work can’t be reconvened due to the pandemic.

An untitled Star Wars movie has been moved from December 2022 to December 2023.

The French Dispatch was been indefinitely delayed

Elsewhere, Wes Anderson’s latest project The French Dispatch, starring Tilda Swinton, Timothee Chalamet and Lea Seydoux, has now been undated as well.

The French Dispatch was originally due to land in July in the US (an Australian date was unconfirmed), which was then pushed to October and is now indefinitely delayed.

It was to have its premiere at Cannes Film Festival in May but Cannes, like every other film event since the start of the pandemic, was cancelled in its physical form.

In the US, the Kenneth Branagh Hercule Poirot follow-up Death on the Nile has shifted to late-October while Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel moves to October 2021. Keri Russell horror movie Antlers, originally due out in April this year, has been moved to February 2021.

There are no confirmations on Australian release dates for these films but it’s highly likely to follow the US calendar.

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