Tom Holland’s next outing as Spider-Man has been delayed, Sony has announced.
The studio said the as-yet-untitled sequel to 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home will now launch in the US on November 5 2021, a delay of about four months.
That led Disney to announce Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness, starring Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role, will now arrive in March 2022, having previously been set for the date now occupied by Spider-Man.
And Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love And Thunder has been brought forward a week in February 2022.
The moves were part of a wider reshuffle by Sony and Disney, as Hollywood continues to react to the coronavirus pandemic which has closed cinemas around the world.
British star Holland’s video game adaption Uncharted has been brought forward to July next year from October 2021, and Hotel Transylvania 4 will now launch in August 2021 instead of December of that year.
Comedy Man From Toronto, starring Kevin Hart and Woody Harrelson, has been pushed back from November this year to September 2021.
Production of that film has been paused by the viral outbreak. Other Sony films affected by the schedule shake-up include its sequel to the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, which has been pushed to October 2022 from April 2022.
Animated films Connected and Vivo have also been delayed, to October this year and June next year respectively.
The Nightingale, starring sisters Dakota and Elle Fanning, has moved from Christmas Day to an unannounced release date.
Disney also moved the release dates of four untitled films. Hollywood has been left reeling by the pandemic, with almost all major releases in 2020 being delayed.
They include Disney’s big-budget Mulan remake, Daniel Craig’s final outing as James Bond No Time To Die and Tom Cruise’s Top Gun sequel.
Some experts predict the final cost of the crisis for the entertainment industry may run into the tens of billions of pounds.