I think you’re right. MGM and Universal are likely to move No Time to Die yet again from April to November. The potential box office haul for the James Bond franchise in a non-pandemic world is just so much greater than any streaming service could match in subscriber/stock growth by releasing it, so it’s no wonder that Netflix and other streamers were unwilling to pony up the reported $600 million asking price to obtain it. All of Daniel Craig’s 007 flicks have been global behemoths so MGM and Universal need his final adventure to play in theaters in a post-COVID era.Angilasman wrote: ↑Fri Jan 15, 2021 6:15 pm Ooooh, okay. Alright. I was holding out hope that maybe I could safely see this in the theater, but... all things considered it's not a big deal.
It feels like, to me, that all the movies that the studios are counting on to have a big theatrical hauls are being moved to the second part of the year when, post widespread vaccination, there's a better chance for them. But with WB and their streaming service they are clustering everything in the first half of the year where they will, essentially, own half the year as the only name in big movie releases before things start up again.
Does that make sense?
As a Godzilla fan who was disappointed that Godzilla: King of the Monsters failed to connect with general audiences, even though the writing was on the wall for the MonsterVerse after that, I was still hoping that Warner Bros. would want to continue the franchise. I hoped that they would delay Godzilla vs. Kong to a safer, post-pandemic release date to give it the chance to maximize its box office returns, whether that meant later in 2021 or even as far off as November 2022. I was hoping that WB would give Godzilla vs. Kong the best chance to redeem Godzilla’s potential as a Hollywood film franchise, to demonstrate the drawing power of Godzilla clashing with Kong on the big screen, to hopefully give moviegoers a better impression of the Big G and leave them wanting more, to maybe see the MonsterVerse continue beyond this fourth film after all.
As a Godzilla fan who wants to see Godzilla vs. Kong, I’ll certainly welcome the chance to watch it on March 26, whether I’ve gotten vaccinated by that point and I’m seeing it in a theater or I’m at home signing up for the HBO Max free trial. Still, it’s disheartening but unsurprising to see that WB is eager to unload the film to the public as soon as possible, that they’re using Godzilla and Kong’s historic Hollywood rematch to prop up their fledgling streaming service, and that they're probably correct in thinking GvsK is more valuable to WarnerMedia's stock as a driver for HBO Max subscribers than as a potential theatrical draw in a post-pandemic world. I will enjoy watching this flick when it’s available, and I’ll buy it on BRD when that gets released, and I’ll always appreciate the fact that Warner Bros. and Legendary were willing to roll the dice and shoot four mega-budget Godzilla/Kong movies in a span of about six years, and I'll always be thankful that they were irresponsible enough to shoot the fourth and most expensive one before the third one even flopped in theaters. This chapter in Godzilla history has been fun and interesting to experience as it's been happening.
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