The sequel to “Spider-Man: Far From Home” finds itself even further away, delayed 1 month to a release date of December 17, 2021. The would-be ninth Spidey film of the past couple of decades had was due to release in November that same year, but Sony announced the move after Disney announced a huge wave of delays to their film slate. Sony’s sequel to the Tom Holland starring “Far From Home” sequel will now be filling the gap left by (yet another) delay of Disney’s “Avatar 2,” now slated for release on Dec. 16, 2022.
After years of dominating the summer and fall slates, this latest wave of delays might spell the longest absence of a surefire Disney (co-produced, in this case) blockbuster in some time, now that “Mulan,” future installments of “Star Wars” and “Avatar” have all also been pushed back in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Tom Holland’s “Spider-Man” franchise was originally supposed to be released on July 16, 2021, but Sony had previously postponed it to Nov. 5, 2021, back in April of this year. Sony Pictures did however note that the latest delay was only part of its domestic release calendar, so the plans for the film’s international release are still in question.
The move is huge but unsurprising, as theatres are still closed due to the pandemic and there’s doesn’t appear to be a plan for safe reopening for a wide audience any time soon. The announcement comes on the heels of a huge wave of delays due to the shutdown of multiple productions, with the rest of its fellow MCU entries shifted due to the widespread shutdown of film production.
The other would-be big-budget summer films of this year like Patty Jenkins’ “Wonder Woman 1984” have also vacated their original release dates. “Tenet,” after what can only be presumed as very stubborn resistance from director Christopher Nolan, is now delayed indefinitely after multiple rescheduling.
The sequel to Sony Pictures other Spidey franchise, the animated “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” is currently slated for Oct. 7, 2022, after it was delayed six months earlier this year. [Variety]