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Warner Bros. Considering 2021 Release For Wonder Woman 1984 As COVID-19 Continues To Run Rampant

While many will be hoping to close out an otherwise miserable 2020 with a bang with a slate of blockbuster movies such as Wonder Woman 1984 for the holiday season, it appears that that might not be the case.

Deadline reports that the higher-ups at Warner Bros. are contemplating the removal of the 25 December release date of the DCEU sequel starring Gal Gadot, and instead pushing it back to 2021. While nothing has been officially announced as of yet, the fact of the matter is that the theatre business in the US and parts of Europe is still not doing so good, what with the COVID-19 pandemic still slowing the globe to a standstill.

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In recent weeks, European governments such as Italy, Germany, as well as the United Kingdom, have all imposed another set of lockdown periods to contain another surge of COVID-19 infections. This also means yet another closure of public businesses such as restaurants, retail outlets, and, inevitably, cinemas.

With big-name studios already deciding to take the risk of a profit cut by moving their films to streaming services such as Disney+ and HBO Max, it’s a surprise that Warner Bros. isn’t considering the same for Wonder Woman 1984. But we imagine it’s due to their confidence that by then, theatres would have reopened enough for a sizeable physical audience to help rake in a sizeable profit.

But let’s face it — if there isn’t an actual cure to the pandemic, there can be no assurance to the continuation of all businesses, not just the entertainment industry. And given the current situation, it would only make sense for Warner Bros. to hold back what would otherwise be a heavy hitter in the box office, given the popularity of the 2018 Wonder Woman movie, as they would want to maximise earnings from all the recent hype.

Other December films that could also be in contention for a delay include Monster Hunter (3 December, 30 December in the US), Free Guy (10 December), and another Gal Gadoc-led film, Death on the Nile (17 December).