Christopher Nolan’s Tenet has been indefinitely delayed. As reported by Variety, the long-awaited sci-fi movie has now vanished entirely from Warner Bros’ release calendar.
Tenet’s original July 17 release had already been pushed back by the studio twice, with the most recent release date being August 12. Unfortunately, with the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to wreak havoc on the entertainment industry, it would seem Warners is no longer willing to attempt a summer release.
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Interestingly, chairman Toby Emmerich hints the studio may abandon plans for a simultaneous global launch of Tenet, instead releasing the film in individual markets as the public health crisis allows.
“We will share a new 2020 release date imminently for Tenet, Christopher Nolan’s wholly original and mind-blowing feature,” said Emmerich in a statement. “We are not treating Tenet like a traditional global day-and-date release, and our upcoming marketing and distribution plans will reflect that.”
Based on Emmerich’s statement, Warners is apparently still hoping to release Tenet in 2020, at least in some markets. Variety writes, “Sources at Warner Bros. stress that they will have to be flexible with its plans to release ‘Tenet,’ which means it will not have a traditional theatrical rollout. Movie theaters overseas have already started to reopen, so there’s a chance it could launch internationally prior to a domestic release.”
Warners is also delaying another major release until well into next year. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It has been pushed back from September 11, 2020 until June 4, 2021.
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As things currently stand, Disney’s Mulan will be the first summer blockbuster to open in theaters, with a release date of August 21. However, Tenet’s indefinite delay casts new doubt on whether Mulan will meet its latest release date.
For more on how COVID-19 could affect the film industry, head here.
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Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
Source: IGN.com Tenet Delayed Again: WB Pulls the Movie From Release Calendar