Disney has delayed the release of its blockbuster remake of Mulan until August amid surging coronavirus case numbers in the US.
In a further blow to the beleaguered cinema industry, the film that was originally set to arrive in March before the pandemic intervened has been pushed back by almost a month.
It is now due to launch on August 21 instead of July 24.
Announcing the delay, Walt Disney Studios chief creative officer Alan Horn and co-chairman Alan Bergman said in a joint statement: “While the pandemic has changed our release plans for Mulan and we will continue to be flexible as conditions require, it has not changed our belief in the power of this film and its message of hope and perseverance.”
Disney’s decision to delay Mulan comes as several states across the US have started to reverse reopening measures following record numbers of coronavirus cases.
Texas governor Greg Abbott ordered all bars to close, while Florida banned alcohol at all such establishments.
A message from Mulan Director, Niki Caro. pic.twitter.com/0L3VzAfaeB
— Mulan (@DisneysMulan) March 12, 2020
The two states joined the small but growing list of those that are either reversing or putting any further reopenings of their economies on hold because of a resurgence by the virus, mostly in the south and west of the country.
Mulan was on the verge of release in March – with a world premiere taking place in Los Angeles and a scaled back event in London – when the pandemic closed most cinemas around the world.
Starring Liu Yifei in the title role as a female warrior and directed by Niki Caro, it is a remake of the 1998 animated film of the same name.
Its delay comes a day after Warner Bros announced another summer blockbuster – Christopher Nolan’s Tenet – was also being pushed back.
That movie’s launch has been moved from July 31 to August 12.