Disney delays 'Black Widow', 'Eternals' and more to 2021
Marvel fans will have to wait a little longer if they want to see Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow on the big screen after Disney pushed back its theatrical release to 2021.
The company announced on Thursday that the highly-awaited superhero film which is supposed to kick off Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will now premiere on May 7, 2021 instead of November 6. Disney previously postponed Black Widow’s launch date to May 1 in the wake of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
Aside from the Natasha Romanoff feature film, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings starring Simu Liu has also been delayed for a few months, from May 7, 2021 to July 9, 2021 while the epic superhero blockbuster Eternals has been moved to November 5, 2021.
In a Twitter post, Kumail Nanjiani, one of the stars in the Eternals, expressed his support to the studio, saying that Marvel made “the right and responsible decision" to delay the film's release.
“There’s a pandemic. Nothing is more important than health & lives. I can’t tell ppl to go to a movie theater until I feel safe going to one,” Nanjiani said. “Take care of yourselves. I promise it’ll be worth the wait!”
Eternals delayed to Nov 5, 2021. Marvel made the right & responsible decision. There’s a pandemic. Nothing is more important than health & lives. I can’t tell ppl to go to a movie theater until I feel safe going to one.
— Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) September 23, 2020
Take care of yourselves. I promise it’ll be worth the wait!
Some of the Disney films that are being delayed are Steven Spielberg’s musical adaptation of West Side Story, which will now debut on December 10, 2021 and Death on the Nile, which received a December 18, 2020 release date.
According to Associated Press, around 70 percent of movie theaters are currently open in the United States while those in Los Angeles and New York remain closed. Disney’s announcement came on the heels of Tenet’s theatrical debut, which raked in an estimated $20.2 million during the holiday weekend.