Dwayne Johnson announces Black Adam has been delayed once again, now shifting to a late October release. Johnson has been slated to play anti-hero Black Adam in the DCEU for years now, with him first being cast in the role back in 2014. The long-awaited movie, which is directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, is expected to cover Black Adam's origins and introduce the Justice Society. In addition to Johnson, Black Adam stars Sarah Shahi, Aldis Hodge, Noah Centineo, Quintessa Swindell, and Pierce Brosnan.
Black Adam has endured a lengthy road to the big screen. The start of production was delayed multiple times, and though Warner Bros. initially set Black Adam for a late 2021 release, that later had to be adjusted. Last year, it finally looked like the movie had found its way forward when filming got underway in the spring and avoided any further delays. Black Adam was scheduled to premiere in July, but that is no longer the case.
On Wednesday, Johnson took to social media to announce that Black Adam has been pushed back. Rather than debuting in the summer, it will now arrive in theaters on October 21. Johnson didn't give a specific reason for the delay, but also shared the news that his other DC film, the animated DC League of Super-Pets, will take Black Adam's previous spot of July 29. With the October date, Johnson explained the movie can run through major holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
This news, while a bit of a blow for fans who have been eagerly awaiting Black Adam, isn't anything new. Movie delays have been frequent since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, but recent months have seen encouraging signs of theaters getting business back. Last weekend, another DC film, The Batman, scored the second-highest opening weekend of the pandemic with an impressive $134 million gross. It isn't clear if Black Adam's new delay has anything to do with the pandemic, but that could be a factor in its desire to move further back in the year. At the very least, fans can rest assured that Black Adam truly will debut at some point; it was prominently featured in the DCEU's 2022 trailer, indicating it's still a major priority for the franchise.
Black Adam's new October date presents a unique situation for the entire DCEU. As it stands right now, The Flash is set to premiere in November, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will follow in December. Now it seems likely that at least one of them will move; having three high-profile superhero releases coming so close to one another is unprecedented, and likely not what Warner Bros. wants for its biggest movies. At the time of Johnson's announcement, neither movie has been delayed just yet. Black Adam is now poised for a major holiday run, which could prove essential in drawing in eyes for this long-gestating flick. As for the rest of the release calendar, stay tuned.
Source: Dwayne Johnson/Instagram
