‘The Green Knight’ Pulled From UK Release Calendar Due To Covid Concerns

Tom Grater
·1 min read

A24’s The Green Knight, David Lowery’s fantasy epic starring Dev Patel, has been taken out of its UK theatrical release slot just two weeks before it was due to hit theaters.

Deadline has confirmed that the decision was taken by UK distribution outfit Entertainment Film Distributors (EFD) and that the U.S. release is going ahead as planned on July 30.

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We have been told that the move was made due to the UK’s coronavirus situation, which is looking precarious at present.

The country removed virtually all restrictions on July 19, but that has coincided with a surge of the Delta variant and numbers have been getting close to 50k per day, prompting fears of another lockdown. As things stand, however, cinemas are open for business and there is no immediate suggestion of them being shuttered again.

EFD typically supports its UK releases with a sizeable marketing spend so will have been worried by the prospect of further disruption that could impact the viability of a significant cinema release. The country is also in the middle of a heatwave which tends to impact takings.

Deadline has contacted EFD for comment.

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