For some time now The New Mutants has been the black sheep of Marvel movies, being one of the few Fox produced projects to survive the transition when the studio got purchased by Disney. Despite this, The New Mutants has been constantly delayed, with many fans wondering why Disney doesn't simply push the movie onto streaming or VOD.
Josh Boone has revealed why this option hasn't been explored in an exclusive interview with Collider. The director, when asked, explained: “With most movies, you sign contracts that guarantee a theatrical release, so it needs to open to ever go digital in the first place. We just, too, would like to see people to see it in the theater. But it needs to obviously be at the right time when it’s safe to go back.” So it seems The New Mutants has been caught between its contractual obligations and the worldwide pandemic.
As Boone mentions, theatrical release is not currently practical, with many big studios choosing to delay even entirely finished movies in order to avoid low turnout and protect public health. Disney itself has chosen to push back its Marvel Cinematic Universe projects in order to navigate social distancing restrictions. While there are many legitimate reasons why The New Mutants cannot be shown in theaters at this time, it is still disappointing news for fans who may have hoped for the film to release in some form or another within the near future.
It is also an unexpected moment of transparency for a project that has been shrouded in a lot of unanswered questions and lack of information. At the time of writing, The New Mutants does not even have a prospective release date, and its connection to the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe remains a large question mark hanging over Disney's acquisition of the project. It is also unclear whether Disney has any plans to support the series beyond the first film, with Boone detailing plans for a trilogy that he admits seems unlikely under new leadership. It seems the answers to these questions will remain unknown until the film finally hits theaters sometime in the future. Until then, fans will have to placate themselves with the handful of trailers and teasers already released for public consumption.
The New Mutants will release in theaters at some point, hopefully sooner rather than later.
MORE: Storm's Original Role in The New Mutants Revealed
Source: Collider