We’ve been here before. Quickly approaching the release date of “The New Mutants,” anticipating at any moment that the studio will swoop in and delay it yet again. This has happened numerous times already. But, actually, it appears that the August 28 release date is going to stick. We’re just as surprised as you are.
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According to Variety, Disney is still pushing forward with the August 28 release of the upcoming superhero film, “The New Mutants.” This would be more than two years after it was originally set to hit theaters when Fox was a studio that wasn’t owned by the Mouse House. And even though the latest delays were due to the pandemic, it appeared that Disney’s best bet would be to just release the film on a streaming platform and move on with life. But no. Theaters it is.
The report claims that one theater exhibitor said, “It’s for sure opening August 28th!”
This is about as definitive as you can possibly be. And this means the slow death of the Fox/Marvel universe that began in 2000’s “X-Men” is now going to come to an end in a couple of weeks. As they say, it’s with a whimper and not a bang.
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This news comes on the heels of director Josh Boone seemingly confirming that contractual requirements are forcing Disney to have some sort of theatrical release for the film. And since “The New Mutants” was never going to be an MCU-level hit, why not release it at a time when theaters are begging for studio content, even if the box office return will be fairly slight?
And who knows? With Universal making a deal with AMC to have first-run films leave theaters after only 17 days and arrive on PVOD, maybe Disney can strike a similar deal and release ‘New Mutants’ on PVOD a few weeks after it hits theaters? That way the studio gives it big screen real estate while also making sure it makes as much money as possible with people who don’t want to travel to the multiplex.
Whatever happens, we now live in a world where ‘New Mutants’ is definitely hitting theaters, and “Wonder Woman 1984” might actually get delayed. Go figure.
Here’s a new teaser to help get you excited: