Why did Disney move ‘The Marvels’ to November?

Disney and Marvel have pushed back the release of “The Marvels,” a direct sequel to both “Captain Marvel” and “Ms. Marvel,” until November 10, after it was originally set to debut in theaters at the end of July. As a result, they moved up the “Haunted Mansion” slot a few weeks into the open slot; the film was originally scheduled to debut on August 11.

But don’t immediately think that such a big date change is a bad sign for the film (although you can’t completely rule it out). Post-production or VFX issues are always a potential culprit in these delays, but Disney debuted some footage that played hot at D23 last year, and there’s no indication that’s the case.

Rather, the switch makes sense for both “The Marvels” and “Haunted Mansion” for a few reasons. These could include Disney’s new corporate structure under CEO Bob Iger, which is said to be more creator-centric.

For “The Marvels,” a July slot puts the film’s release just over two months before the next MCU film on the calendar, “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3.” It would also have left a huge 10-month gap between it and May 2024’s “Captain America: New World Order.” That’s a long time for audiences to get a new MCU movie every few months.

The compromise of how “The Marvels” competes at the box office with other films could be a wash. In July, the film would have arrived a week after Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer.” The new November slot is a week removed from “Dune: Part Two” and a week ahead of Lionsgate’s “Hunger Games” trailer.

It’s not exactly an easier race—arguably worse—but there is one large head. The summer is so crowded that the finding Any Securing an IMAX screening of “The Marvels” would have been a tough ask. More open in autumn.

And Disney’s own summer offer is especially full. Along with “Guardians,” “The Marvels” was slated to follow a summer that included Pixar’s “Elemental,” the live-action “The Little Mermaid” and “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” t, not to mention. Enchanted Castle.” Fall is just two weeks away from the pre-Thanksgiving release of the animated “Wish.”

Higher. Further. Faster. Together.

Check out the brand new trailer for Marvel Studios’ The Marvels, which hits theaters on November 10th. pic.twitter.com/zSlozSfQrz

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) February 17, 2023

A person familiar with the changed schedule adds that November has been a sweet spot for Marvel movies in recent years. “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” opened in that slot in 2022 and earned $855 million worldwide. Others that opened in the same November window were “Thor: Ragnarok” ($855 million), “Doctor Strange” ($677 million) and the less financially successful “Eternals” ($402 million).

The individual adds that it also makes more sense to play “Haunted Mansion” in an earlier slot in the summer, as the film is more geared toward a kid-oriented and family audience, and would benefit from a release when school is out. people can also go to Disneyland – bonus!). Also nice: Given that Disney is releasing new movies on Disney+, “Haunted Mansion” should hit Disney+ right around Halloween, right around the time “Hocus Pocus 2” makes a killing on the service.

And there is one more factor. In his latest earnings call, Iger mentioned several times that he is “getting a better handle” on Disney’s franchise content. The individual suggested to IndieWire that this means a more deliberate focus on how to secure larger windows for franchise movies and shows, as well as taking a holistic look at Disney Entertainment’s entire slate.

Kevin Feige even hinted at this – at least as far as Disney’s main streaming service’s MCU series is concerned – in an interview EW This week, he said that “the pacing of Disney+ shows needs to change to give each of them a chance to shine.” That means potentially bigger differences between shows… and less per year.

“The Marvels” is directed by Nia DaCosta and stars Brie Larson, Carol Danvers, Iman Vellani Kamala Khan, Teyonah Parris and Monica Rambeau in a team-up movie that Feige compared to the original “Avengers.” Justin Simien directs Haunted Mansion.

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