Disney has announced a change in the lineup of its films, which includs some shifts to the Marvel Studios' Avengers: Secret Wars, Deadpool 3, Fantastic Four, and Blade.
Disney is well known for announcing release dates years in advance. When it comes to films under the Marvel Studios banner, it is especially well known for trying to stick to that outline as best it can. Though some Marvel films such as Morbius (whose release date was delayed seven times), don't always end up premiering when they were first intended to, films set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe are usually pretty solid in keeping to certain windows of release. Disney's slate is meticulously crafted so that it complements various television releases and rival theatrical releases, and the corporation often tries to match movies with the tone of a season.
Now, Disney has decided to radically alter the dates of some of its future releases. Among these films are some key Marvel Studios releases such as Blade, which recently paused production as Marvel Studios searches for a new director. Blade is being moved from a November 3, 2023, release slot to a September 6, 2024, release date. Meanwhile, Deadpool 3 is moving back from that September 6, 2024, slot into a November 8, 2024 slot. Fantastic Four is now shifting from November 8, 2024, to February 14, 2025. Meanwhile, Avengers: Secret Wars is being moved from November 7, 2025, to May 1, 2026.
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Other films being moved around include Searchlight's Chevalier, which will release on April 7, 2023. Meanwhile, AHaunting in Venice will now open on September 15, 2023. Finally, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is set to release on May 24, 2024. Despite these changes, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty remains in its May 2, 2025 release slot.
Some of these release date shifts are quite drastic. Blade, in light of its production pause, is facing a dramatic shift of ten months. It appears that most of these films are being shifted primarily because of Blade's production pause. Deadpool 3, which Ryan Reynolds only recently revealed the release date of, probably was pushed back due to Blade taking over its original release date, and each successive film had to shift to make room for the previous films on the slate. This probably does not include Avengers: Secret Wars, however. That film has yet to find a director, which means that it's probably a precaution to make sure the movie is the best quality it can be.
Some of these announcements may inspire a bit of frustration due to a longer waiting period for fans, but others are very exciting to hear about. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is picking up steam now that some of its cast has been announced, and now fans have a concrete date for its release.
Source: Walt Disney Company