Disney might delay the release date of the live-action Mulan remake again. Like every other studio in Hollywood, Disney has had to adjust its plans for 2020 and beyond significantly in light of the Coronavirus. With theaters shutting down in March, the Mouse House had no other choice than to delay Mulan just a few weeks before it was scheduled to be released. The live-action reimagining was later rescheduled to arrive in theaters on July 24th.
Its been months since Mulan's delay coincided with the majority of the summer movie season changing, but it has only been more recently that the possibility of theaters reopening started to materialize. Some of the biggest theater chains in the world have announced their plans to open back up, as mid-July became the target for some of the year's biggest movies to finally be released. Christopher Nolan's Tenet was scheduled to be the true kick-off to this return, but Warner Bros. recently announced that they were delaying the release by two weeks. This move gave Mulan the change to be the first blockbuster out in theaters if Disney wanted.
According to a report from THR, it appears the release of Mulan could be delayed again. The reasoning isn't attributed to Tenet's delay, though, as the rising number of COVID-19 cases has left Disney rethinking their strategy. For a film of this size, New York and Los Angeles need to have theaters open for Mulan to perform well, but the surge of cases in those cities could keep theaters shut down. Disney was also counting on China to help boost Mulan's box office numbers, but theaters have yet to reopen there too due to the Coronavirus.
Even though Disney has yet to make any official announcement about Mulan getting delayed again, it does seem likely. The increased number of Coronavirus cases may very well lead to theaters staying closed, and Disney won't release Mulan if they don't have the chance to reach the largest amount of moviegoers. Even if theaters were allowed to open up as planned in all major markets, some suspected Disney could move Mulan anyway so the film didn't have the added pressure to perform as the first blockbuster - even if it would've been an expensive move to make.
If Disney eventually delays Mulan, it will be fascinating to see where it is moved to. Disney could elect to push Mulan back to December and hope that theaters will be open and returning to bigger audiences by then. If the studio wanted to play it safe, though, Mulan could be moved out of 2020 altogether and be released in 2021. However, Disney might also not have the luxury of being able to wait several months to release a new blockbuster. With so many people anxious for content, Disney could theoretically make Mulan available as a Paid Video on Demand option before adding it to Disney+. No matter what decision they come to, Mulan - and other Disney titles - could be delayed again soon.
Source: THR
