Coronavirus panic has taken our toilet paper, travel and toothpaste (yes, our local supermarket has completely run out!). And now Peter Rabbit 2 has been banished from the big screen.
Our favourite bunny and his furry friends were going to be hopping into the movies on 19 March. But fears that patrons will give the cinemas a skip in fear of catching COVID-19, have prompted the big wigs to postpone the movie release a few months until 10 September 2020.
More Movies Delayed
Peter Rabbit 2 : The Runaway is the second major release to fall victim to virus mania. The new James Bond film No Time To Die was delayed from April to 12 November later this year.
The original Peter Rabbit film, which was released in 2018, made more than US$350m at worldwide box offices, with two-thirds of the revenues originating from outside of North America.
The release of Disney’s Mulan in China has been delayed indefinitely. The epic Disney live-action blockbuster is still on track for a Aussie release on 26 March.
Loss Of Revenue
There has not yet been a significant drop in movie earnings since the Coronavirus threat hit. However, all 70,000 cinemas in China have had their doors shut since January and all cinemas in Italy have also now closed. Some cinemas in France are following suit.
Some analysts have predicted that Coronavirus could cost the film industry upward of US$5 billion.
“If theaters are closed, it’s obvious there’s going to be an impact,” Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore, spoke to Vanity Fair
However, it’s not all doom and gloom.
“At some point, this crisis will clear, and the movies will most certainly be released. At that point, I think there will be pent-up demand. If you’ve been sequestered indoors for weeks or even months, once there is some kind of normalcy restored, I think there’s going to be an intense interest in these outside-the-home activities,” Dergarabedian said.
Trolls Are Still Singing
There is some good news though: the much anticipated Trolls: World Tour sequel is on track for release in Australia on 26 March. In the US, Dreamworks Animation actually made a surprise move of moving its release date up by one week, to the 10 April, which was the original release date for the delayed James Bond movie. This date also marks the start of the Easter weekend and is traditionally a strong revenue generator for movies.
Are you disappointed about the delay of Peter Rabbit 2? Will Coronavirus fears stop you from going to the movies? Tell us in the comments below.
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