Upcoming Releases: Joaquin Phoenix's 'Joker,' Greta Gerwig's 'Little Women,' and 'Zombieland 2' set new dates; 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' moves up two weeks
I have some release date news to share on this Wednesday evening, as Sony and Warner Bros. have set fresh new dates for some of their hottest upcoming titles. The 2019 calendar is finally beginning to take shape, and if the promise of blockbusters like Avengers 4, Star Wars: Episode IX, and Bond 25 wasn't enough for you, the diverse slate of films set to arrive next year is starting to look really impressive.
The big news of the day is that Warner Bros. has officially set a release date for Joker, the Todd Phillips-directed solo film chronicling the adventures of the Clown Prince of Crime. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix as a new version of the famous Batman villain (Jared Leto's take will reportedly continue in other films), and it will hit theaters on October 4, 2019. Existing under a new banner of DC Films, Joker is reportedly a gritty, R-rated take on the character. Per THR, the studio is selling Joker as an "exploration of a man disregarded by society," which fits in line with producer Martin Scorsese's previous films. The film will open on the same day as Ang Lee's Gemini Man and Fox's The Woman in the Window, as well as a week before Dwayne Johnson's Jungle Cruise, The Addams Family animated comedy, and a slew of other releases.
While this was the only WB release news of the day, Sony announced a massive amount of changes, including some that will impact the schedule for this August. Previously set for August 24, Slender Man will now open on August 10, facing down competition from The Meg and Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman. Yeah, I'm not banking on this one becoming a hit.
The John Cho-led Sundance hit Searching has been pushed back a few weeks, now set to debut in limited release on August 24 instead of an August 3 wide release.
In addition, the studio revealed that Matthew McConaughey's White Boy Rick will open in wide release on September 14, facing competition from The Predator, A Simple Favor, Operation Finale, and Unbroken: Path to Redemption. That's going to be a busy weekend- not sure what that means for any of those films.
Those imminent release date shifts aren't all that compelling, but Lady Bird fans will certainly be excited to hear that director Greta Gerwig's follow-up to the teenage classic has been dated. Led by Emma Stone, Saoirse Ronan, Timothée Chalamet, and Meryl Streep, Little Women will arrive in theaters on Christmas Day 2019. Sony is obviously gunning for a mixture of commercial appeal and awards attention, so the Christmas date makes sense. However, the film will face stiff competition in what promises to be one of the most lucrative holiday season in history. In addition to opening on the same day as animated flick Call of the Wild and the Melissa McCarthy-led Superintelligence, Little Women will open just days after the arrival of Star Wars: Episode IX, Murder on the Orient Express sequel Death on the Nile, and musical adaptation Wicked. Oh, not to mention the Jumanji sequel and the Masters of the Universe movie. December 2019 is stacked.
They may have set their most important awards player for a prime date, but Sony also announced the removal of a few critical movies from their calendar. Two untitled animated movies, previously set for Christmas Day 2019 and April 3, 2020, are now listed as TBD. At the moment, it appears that December's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and next fall's Angry Birds Movie 2 are their only upcoming animated projects.
Speaking of more bad news, Sony confirmed what everyone already knew- The Crow remake is not happening in the near future. Originally set for October 11, 2019, the film is now off the calendar completely. Time to call it quits on that one.
Back to the good news. After last week's official confirmation of Zombieland 2, Sony has now dated the sequel for October 11, 2019. While the long-awaited follow-up to the cult classic will surely be the event of the month for fans, it's looking like an increasingly busy Halloween season for movies. Going by the current schedule, Zombieland 2 will open on the same day as Jungle Cruise, The Goldfinch, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and The Addams Family. With quieter weekends throughout the rest of the month, it's likely that the studios will coordinate a more balanced release schedule in the coming months.
With production underway in California, Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has been moved up a few weeks from its former August 9, 2019 date. Led by Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, the ensemble pic will now arrive on July 26, 2019. It's currently the only film scheduled for that prime release date, but July 2019 is stacked with blockbuster titles. In addition to the new Tarantino, Sony/Marvel's Spider-Man: Far From Home, Paramount's Top Gun sequel, and Disney's Lion King remake will all debut in the heart of the summer. However, I'm confident that Tarantino will be able to carve out his slice of the market share.
Finally, the Vin Diesel-led Bloodshot will hit theaters on February 21, 2020. With a cast featuring Eiza Gonzalez, Michael Sheen, Toby Kebbell, and Sam Heughan, the Dave Wilson-directed comic
book adaptation is sure to be one of the events of the month.
That's all for now- look for more news and reviews in the coming days/hours.
Source: Box Office Mojo, THR
Images: Amazon, A24, Sony
The big news of the day is that Warner Bros. has officially set a release date for Joker, the Todd Phillips-directed solo film chronicling the adventures of the Clown Prince of Crime. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix as a new version of the famous Batman villain (Jared Leto's take will reportedly continue in other films), and it will hit theaters on October 4, 2019. Existing under a new banner of DC Films, Joker is reportedly a gritty, R-rated take on the character. Per THR, the studio is selling Joker as an "exploration of a man disregarded by society," which fits in line with producer Martin Scorsese's previous films. The film will open on the same day as Ang Lee's Gemini Man and Fox's The Woman in the Window, as well as a week before Dwayne Johnson's Jungle Cruise, The Addams Family animated comedy, and a slew of other releases.
While this was the only WB release news of the day, Sony announced a massive amount of changes, including some that will impact the schedule for this August. Previously set for August 24, Slender Man will now open on August 10, facing down competition from The Meg and Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman. Yeah, I'm not banking on this one becoming a hit.
The John Cho-led Sundance hit Searching has been pushed back a few weeks, now set to debut in limited release on August 24 instead of an August 3 wide release.
In addition, the studio revealed that Matthew McConaughey's White Boy Rick will open in wide release on September 14, facing competition from The Predator, A Simple Favor, Operation Finale, and Unbroken: Path to Redemption. That's going to be a busy weekend- not sure what that means for any of those films.
Those imminent release date shifts aren't all that compelling, but Lady Bird fans will certainly be excited to hear that director Greta Gerwig's follow-up to the teenage classic has been dated. Led by Emma Stone, Saoirse Ronan, Timothée Chalamet, and Meryl Streep, Little Women will arrive in theaters on Christmas Day 2019. Sony is obviously gunning for a mixture of commercial appeal and awards attention, so the Christmas date makes sense. However, the film will face stiff competition in what promises to be one of the most lucrative holiday season in history. In addition to opening on the same day as animated flick Call of the Wild and the Melissa McCarthy-led Superintelligence, Little Women will open just days after the arrival of Star Wars: Episode IX, Murder on the Orient Express sequel Death on the Nile, and musical adaptation Wicked. Oh, not to mention the Jumanji sequel and the Masters of the Universe movie. December 2019 is stacked.
They may have set their most important awards player for a prime date, but Sony also announced the removal of a few critical movies from their calendar. Two untitled animated movies, previously set for Christmas Day 2019 and April 3, 2020, are now listed as TBD. At the moment, it appears that December's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and next fall's Angry Birds Movie 2 are their only upcoming animated projects.
Speaking of more bad news, Sony confirmed what everyone already knew- The Crow remake is not happening in the near future. Originally set for October 11, 2019, the film is now off the calendar completely. Time to call it quits on that one.
Back to the good news. After last week's official confirmation of Zombieland 2, Sony has now dated the sequel for October 11, 2019. While the long-awaited follow-up to the cult classic will surely be the event of the month for fans, it's looking like an increasingly busy Halloween season for movies. Going by the current schedule, Zombieland 2 will open on the same day as Jungle Cruise, The Goldfinch, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and The Addams Family. With quieter weekends throughout the rest of the month, it's likely that the studios will coordinate a more balanced release schedule in the coming months.
With production underway in California, Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has been moved up a few weeks from its former August 9, 2019 date. Led by Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, the ensemble pic will now arrive on July 26, 2019. It's currently the only film scheduled for that prime release date, but July 2019 is stacked with blockbuster titles. In addition to the new Tarantino, Sony/Marvel's Spider-Man: Far From Home, Paramount's Top Gun sequel, and Disney's Lion King remake will all debut in the heart of the summer. However, I'm confident that Tarantino will be able to carve out his slice of the market share.
Finally, the Vin Diesel-led Bloodshot will hit theaters on February 21, 2020. With a cast featuring Eiza Gonzalez, Michael Sheen, Toby Kebbell, and Sam Heughan, the Dave Wilson-directed comic
book adaptation is sure to be one of the events of the month.
That's all for now- look for more news and reviews in the coming days/hours.
Source: Box Office Mojo, THR
Images: Amazon, A24, Sony
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