As the coronavirus starts appearing in more and more countries around the world, more and more film and TV projects are being affected. China made the decision to close down movie theaters and theme parks as far back as January in an effort to contain the outbreak in its country of origin, and some production companies have closed down indefinitely. In South Korea, BTS has even cancelled a planned concert series in Seoul, and asked their loyal Army fandom to not attend promotional events in order to mitigate risk of spreading the virus. (K-Pop events have generally been hit hard by the contagion.) The country’s box office revenue has even taken a huge dip since cases of the illness have surfaced there.
More recently, Hollywood has started to feel the affects of coronavirus, too. With China having quickly emerged as a massive film market in the past few years, this is very troubling news for the industry. A “finance source” recently told Deadline that the absence of Chinese theatrical contributions could amount to a $4 billion loss just by the end of March, and extremely expensive studio films have come to rely on the country’s film fans to help rocket movies on the scale of Marvel or The Fast Saga into profitability. (That doesn’t even take into account the drops in box office in countries like Italy and South Korean, too, as they weather the economic affects of coronavirus.)
Here’s a guide to what’s been cancelled or delayed so far because of the burgeoning pandemic.
Domestic Projects
Mulan: Chinese release date delayed indefinitely.
No Time To Die: Chinese premiere and press tour cancelled.
Mission: Impossible VII: A planned three-week shoot for the next M:I movie in Venice has been delayed due to the emergence of coronavirus in Italy. The government also shut down carnival celebrations.
Tong Wars: The Amazon-produced series from renowned director Wong Kar Wai has reportedly been delayed indefinitely according to the South China Morning Post. (Amazon has not commented on the matter, though it’s worth nothing that the company has restricted all non-essential employee travel.)
Sonic The Hedgehog: Chinese premiere delayed.
The Amazing Race: CBS has suspended production of the long-running reality competition series.
International Projects
Lost In Russia: Chinese film that premiered online instead of in theaters.
Enter The Fat Dragon: Chinese film that premiered online instead of in theaters.
TBD Jia Zhangke: The Chinese filmmaker who made Ash Is The Purest White said at the Berlin Film Festival that his next film is delayed indefinitely. Many Chinese distributors were also reportedly absent due to issues obtaining visas for travel.
Blossoms: Another Wong Kar Wai project, the Chinese-language film and TV productions have also been indefinitely delayed, according to the SCMP. (No official comment has been given on these shoots either.)
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