2021 partly meant going back to business as usual for the movie industry, but as a new year begins, some large events are already being postponed or outright canceled due to the pandemic, not Batman though. According to recent statements from WarnerMedia's chief executive, The Batman is staying fully on course.
As a new COVID variant raises alarms around the world, gaming events like E3 or the Capcom Cup are being canceled and thus raising the question of whether movies could follow the same route. With the likes of Scream, Death on the Nile, Uncharted, and The Batman leading the way as far as bigger releases go in early 2022, expectations on what kind of decisions their respective studios might take were high, and it looks like things are starting to become more clear.
A new exclusive interview from Puck News featuring WanrerMedia’s CEO Jason Kilar would appear to dispel any rumors of possible pushbacks for The Batman, at least for now. Kilar said, “We're certainly paying attention to everything going on with Omicron." Despite that general sense of caution, Kilar insisted that Warner Bros. feels “good about the date right now," although still clarifying that this will be a matter subject to evaluation on a daily basis until The Batman's eventual premiere on March 4.
Just a week ago, Sony announced yet another delay for its new Marvel film Morbius, triggering warning signs for moviegoers due to fears of a similar domino effect to what No Time to Die had for the past year and a half over the entire industry. Warning signs were fueled by Pixar's recent decision to cancel Turning Red's theatrical release and premiere the animated film on Disney Plus instead. While director Matt Reeves and the entire producing team for The Batman have made clear that this Bruce Wayne does not belong in the DCEU, this is only the first out of five superhero movies from Warner Bros. coming out this year.
Decisions up to this point will have undoubtedly been influenced by the overwhelming success Spider-Man: No Way Home is experiencing all across the globe, especially after the movie easily smashed the $1.5 billion mark at the box office to prove how profitable blockbusters like it or potentially The Batman still are. Coincidentally, this was also what is said to have caused Morbius' pushback to a later date, as Sony would prefer to leave some extra breathing room for Spider-Man to do its thing.
Considering Bruce Wayne has always been DC's undisputed champion, it’s not hard to imagine The Batman becoming another billion dollar hit for Warner Bros., a feat more likely to be accomplished given the early impressions of Robert Pattinson's Batman.
The Batman will be released exclusively in theaters on March 4, 2022.
Source: puck.news
