At the time of writing, movie theaters largely remain closed across the country, and all the major releases continue to be pushed back later and later into the fall. Hollywood is facing the grim reality that theatrical exhibition is not going back to normal any time soon. Production has resumed in some places, mostly overseas, but the backlog of unreleased films has only been growing. More and more films are embracing hybrid PVOD and theatrical releases, and several will be released overseas first. Others are going to Netflix, Hulu, or other online platforms. We're seeing lots of experimentation with online distribution, like Disney's scheme for the live-action "Mulan," which requires paying a hefty additional fee on top of a Disney+ subscription.
And, as the potential window for more 2020 theatrical releases gets smaller and smaller, I've been daydreaming about the 2020 movie year the way it was going to be back in January, with a new James Bond movie set for April, and a new Christopher Nolan movie set for July. And the entertainment industry sure did try to stay optimistic for the first few months, until the coronavirus case numbers started spiking at the end of June, and "Tenet" finally gave up its original release date, moving later in the summer. All plans and schedules are tentative now, because we simply don't know how this is going to play out. I can easily see the theatrical exhibition hiatus lasting a full calendar year or more. And it's been kind of heartbreaking to watch the 2020 movie schedule slowly disintegrate before my eyes.
This was supposed to be the year that female superhero movies really got their moment, with "Black Widow" and "Wonder Woman 1984" primed to be the big summer tentpoles, putting claims about the non-viability of female-lead and female-directed action films to bed permanently. Instead, only Warners' "Birds of Prey" movie was actually released, and it underperformed pretty significantly. Some of this can be blamed on the film not getting to complete its theatrical run, but the optics are pretty glum. And it's a shame, because I want a sequel. Chloe Zhao's "The Eternals" has also been pushed back to next year in the big shuffle of Marvel Phase Four.
This was supposed to be the year of black horror films. In addition to the "Candyman" sequel from Nia DaCosta, and Janelle Monae in "Antebellum," several older properties are being rebooted with black leads. "The Witches" has Octavia Spencer fighting Anne Hathaway's Grand High Witch, and the new "Saw" movie, "Spiral," stars Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson. "Candyman" released a chilling shadow puppet animation segment a few weeks ago that has me excited. Speaking of Chris Rock, at least I'll be able to see him soon as the lead of the fourth season of "Fargo" - delayed several months to September. I'm also happy that "Bad Hair" has found a home on Hulu.
This was supposed to be the year that Paramount Pictures got their groove back, with sequels to "Top Gun," "A Quiet Place," and "Coming to America," and action films "Snake Eyes" and "The Tomorrow War" on their slate. Instead, they've sold the rom-com "The Lovebirds" and one of their major Oscar contenders, Aaron Sorkin's "The Trial of the Chicago 7," to Netflix. "Sonic the Hedgehog" did come out in February and did very well, but everything else is on hold.
This was supposed to be a great year for high concept science-fiction films. Christopher Nolan's "Tenet" and Denis Villeneuve's "Dune" were among my most highly anticipated titles of the year. I also had strong hopes for Miguel Sapochnik's "BIOS" and Chris McKay's "The Tomorrow War," both delayed to next year at the earliest.
This was supposed to be a great year for musicals, with "In the Heights" and "West Side Story" on the way. We did get the filmed version of the "Hamilton" stage show with the original cast early, thanks to Disney+, so there's that.
And, good grief, I really want to see "Last Night in Soho," and "Soul," and "No Time to Die" and "Godzilla vs. Kong" and "Promising Young Woman," and even "New Mutants." I should be watching Wes Anderson's "The French Dispatch" right now.
Most of the bigger movies that were scheduled for 2020 are going to come out eventually, though it looks like the U.S. will be last in line thanks to extended theater closures. However, release schedules are currently a mess. Trailers and ad campaigns are mostly suspended due to the uncertainty of when specific movies are actually going to make it to screens. Smaller titles are falling through the cracks, and many upcoming projects that were in the pre-production or even the production stages are getting cancelled.
Finally, I've become very, very appreciative of Netflix, which may not be turning out the best movies, but "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga" came along just when I needed it. I never thought I'd be so happy to see a goofy Will Ferrell comedy that should have come out in 2005, but here we are.
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