Disney and the Disney-owned Fox Searchlight have removed Mulan and French Dispatch from their upcoming theatrical release calendars indefinitely in response to the continuing coronavirus pandemic. Variety reports that this is the fourth delay for Disney’s live-action Mulan, which was originally scheduled to debut on March 27, and was then pushed to July 24, and then August 21. “Over the last few months, it’s become clear that nothing can be set in stone when it comes to how we release films during this global health crisis, and today that means pausing our release plans for ‘Mulan’ as we assess how we can most effectively bring this film to audiences around the world,†a Disney spokesperson told Variety. This indefinite delay, coming days after Tenet’s indefinite delay gives movie theaters one less major tentpole to reopen with.
Furthermore, Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch, which originally had a July 24 release date and was later pushed to October 16, has now been removed from Disney/Searchlight’s release calendar, as seen in full on IndieWire. The new release calendar also shows that previously-announced installments in the Avatar and Star Wars franchises have been pushed back a year: Avatar 2 is now scheduled for December 16, 2022, and the Untitled Star Wars movie is now scheduled for December 22, 2023. Merry future-Christmas, we guess?