In September, Warner Bros. opted to postpone the release of Wonder Woman 1984 until Christmas day 2020. The delay marked the third time the Wonder Woman sequel was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but director Patty Jenkins has stated that she believes it is possible for the DC film to retain its release date this time.

Warner Bros. reportedly made the decision to postpone Wonder Woman 1984, which had previously been scheduled for a theatrical release in early October before the latest delay, party in response to box office performance of Tenet. The latest Christopher Nolan film debuted to underwhelming box office numbers in the U.S. and has yet to recoup its budget even as it approaches three months of playing in theaters, indicating audiences are not eager to return to theaters amid the pandemic. Now, the number of reported COVID-19 cases is on the rise even in areas that saw a decrease over the summer months, resulting in additional theater closings as studios respond to the second wave by further delaying the release of their own tentpole projects.

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As a result, Wonder Woman 1984 remains one of the only major Hollywood blockbusters scheduled for a theatrical release in 2020, and exhibitors have already noted that it will take more than one new film for theaters to reopen. Despite these challenges, Jenkins told Variety that she remains "very hopeful" that Wonder Woman 1984 can still make its Christmas release date and that it "feels totally possible" to her, but added that nothing can be certain. "I don’t think anybody can be confident of anything right now," said Jenkins. "We just don't know what the course of COVID is going to be like." Jenkins added that the delays have been a "surreal" experience, saying, "the biggest surreality about it is it's supposed to be one adventure, right? You sign on to the movie, you write the movie, you direct the movie, you make the movie, the movie comes out, and you move on. Instead, like, I spent three years doing one thing, seven days a week, and then I just popped out of it to just nothing. No evidence of that [work]."

Wonder Woman 1984 will star Game of Thrones alumn Pedro Pascal as Maxwell Lord, a wealthy businessman and one of the primary antagonists of the film. Speaking with the same outlet, Pascal explained that the delays aren't surprising to him at this point. "As far as movie releases are concerned and the tremendous way that the industry is having to improvise around these circumstances, nothing is surprising," he said. "We're all getting used to things shifting day-to-day, hour-to-hour, you know? That's what we’re all dealing with."

While rumors suggested Warner Bros. would release Wonder Woman 1984 straight to video-on-demand, Jenkins recently dismissed the idea and insisted a streaming option isn't even being considered. In fact, Jenkins explained that she hopes Wonder Woman 1984 will be able to entice moviegoers back to cinemas and prevent the demise of the theatrical experience.

Whatever the future holds for Wonder Woman 1984, Jenkins and lead star Gal Gadot are already eyeing their next project together. The duo is re-teaming for a biographical drama film centered on Egyptian ruler Cleopatra.

Wonder Woman 1984 is scheduled to be released in theaters on December 25th, 2020.

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Source: Variety