‘Mulan’ & ‘Avatar 2’ Release Dates Rushed Back Due To COVID-19

As the COVID-19 pandemic keeps movie theaters closed across the United States, Disney has pushed back the release date for some of its most anticipated films, including Avatar 2, the Mulan live-action remake, and the new Star Wars movie.

Mulan, which had already been postponed twice from its original March release date to August 21, has been pushed back again indefinitely.

“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 Walt Disney Studios spokesperson said in a statement to various news outlets.

Avatar 2, which was set to be released in December 2021, has been pushed back a year to December 2022. Avatar 3, 4 and 5 are now set to be released in 2024, 2026 and 2028, respectively. In a statement on social media, director James Cameron pointed out that although filming for the movie has started again in New Zealand, as the country gained control over the coronavirus, post-production work in Los Angeles has not been able to resume.

“There is no one more disappointed about this delay than me,” Cameron wrote. “But I am buoyed by the incredible performance of our cast and the extraordinary work that Weta Digital is doing bringing the world of Pandora and the characters of the film to life.”

The next three Star Wars films have also been delayed. The next films in the franchise are now set to be released December 2023, 2025 and 2027.

Wes Anderson‘s The French Dispatch has been postponed indefinitely, Ridley Scott‘s The Last Duel has been pushed from Christmas 2020 to October 2021 and The Personal History of David Copperfield has been pushed to the end of August 2020.

Warner Bros. also delayed a highly anticipated upcoming release, Tenet, and has not released a new premiere date.

Disney has moved some of its planned theatrical releases to its streaming service, Disney+, including Hamilton and Artemis Fowl, but has seemed to hold onto plans for theatrical releases of big movies like Mulan.