No Time to Die release postponed in wake of coronavirus outbreak

Nicola Dove/MGM

No Time to Die, the latest James Bond movie starring Daniel Craig, has officially been postponed, producers announced Wednesday.

"MGM, Universal and Bond producers, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, announced today that after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace, the release of NO TIME TO DIE will be postponed until November 2020," reads a tweet on the film's official social media account. "The film will be released in the U.K. on Nov. 12, 2020, with worldwide release dates to follow, including the U.S. launch on Nov. 25, 2020."

The announcement follows a massive online fan petition that urged the studio to push the premiere as concerns over the coronavirus continue to spread as fast as the illness itself.

As with many studios across film and television, MGM was closely monitoring the situation with the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, new cases of which continue to pop up in the United States and abroad. The decision to postpone the release was, at the end of the day, an economic decision in light of mass theater closures in China, Italy, France, and other international territories, EW has learned. No Time to Die is the first Bond film in five years and the studio wanted to bring the release to the largest number of fans globally as possible. With so many unknowables surrounding the spread of coronavirus and continuing theater closures, MGM's hand was forced to make a decision.

No Time to Die was initially planned to hit the U.K. and select international theaters on April 2, followed by a U.S. release on April 10. Directed by Cary Fukunaga, the film features Rami Malek, Léa Seydoux, Lashana Lynch, Ana de Armas, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Jeffrey Wright, Ralph Fiennes, and Christoph Waltz.

This push of a few months marks the latest major impact on Hollywood's spring and summer release slate as the industry drastically shifts its plans. Some box office analysts anticipate billions of dollars in losses, particularly with releases coming in the next few months.

Paramount recently canceled production of Mission: Impossible 7 in Italy, CBS similarly canceled filming The Amazing Race after stops in England and Scotland, and Amazon recently pulled its presence from the SXSW Film Festival, among other developments across the landscape.

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