Sony Pictures has significantly upended its theatrical release slate for the remainder of 2023 and into 2024, including pulling the third “Spider-Verse” movie “Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse” until an unspecified date. The changes come as Hollywood is in the midst of dual strikes, including the actors strike that prevents stars from promoting studio releases.
Other sequels and tentpoles have also been dramatically shifted, including a second “Ghostbusters” movie with Paul Rudd, this summer’s “Gran Turismo,” “Kraven the Hunter,” and a new “Karate Kid” movie, to name a few. The studio did however assign summer 2024 dates for the fourth “Bad Boys” film (June 14, 2024, or Father’s Day Weekend) and the third “Venom” movie (July 12, 2024).
An individual with knowledge tells IndieWire Sony is considering several dates for the release of “Beyond the Spider-Verse” depending on how long the strike lasts.
Also removed from the theatrical release slate for now is “They Listen” starring John Cho and produced by Jason Blum. It was meant to open August 30, 2024.
“Gran Turismo,” the PlayStation video game movie that was meant to come out August 11, has only been delayed by a matter of weeks to August 25. The studio can’t rely on stars to promote the film but will rely on fan buzz, and in a highly rare move, Sony will host two weeks of sneak preview screenings on the 11th and 18th before it opens wide. That could in some ways open up IMAX screens for a fourth weekend for “Oppenheimer” before “Gran Turismo” was meant to swoop in.
“Madame Web,” another Sony universe movie of Marvel characters that stars Dakota Johnson, has moved up by just two days to Valentine’s Day weekend, but its counterpart, the R-rated “Kraven the Hunter” that was meant to predate it on October 6 this year, will now not open until Labor Day weekend of 2024, opening August 30.
The untitled “Ghostbusters” movie is set for March 29, 2024, Easter weekend, after it was supposed to open this Christmas. And a “Karate Kid” sequel movie is now set for December 13, 2024, a six-month delay from June 7, 2024.
The release date shifts as a result of the strikes are not the first and won’t be the last, especially if both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA remain on the picket lines for an extended period. Already movies like MGM’s “Challengers” starring Zendaya have dropped out of festival debuts at Venice and are delaying until next spring, while Searchlight’s Yorgos Lanthimos film “Poor Things” starring Emma Stone has been pushed to December after it was meant to open this September.
