Warner Bros. has revealed that Wonder Woman 1984 will come to HBO Max as well as theaters on its revised December 25 release date.
Like the rest of the world, Hollywood has had to navigate unchartered waters in 2020. Between the closure of movie theaters worldwide and sets being off-limits for much of the year, multiple blockbuster projects have been repeatedly delayed. Black Widow and No Time To Die were both scheduled for release in the first half of 2020. They will now not be seen by the masses until 2021, at least.
Following delay after delay, Wonder Woman 1984 was expected to suffer the same fate. As it stands, the next chapter in the DC Extended Universe will hit theaters on December 25, 2020, in the US, and other parts of the world nine days earlier. Not only has Warner Bros. confirmed it will be sticking to that date, but it will also release the movie on HBO Max.
Since not all theaters have been reopened in the US, and many people still don't feel comfortable leaving the house to see a movie, Warner Bros. views this as the best and really only option to prevent WW 1984's release date from being delayed further. "We’ve had to be innovative in keeping our businesses moving forward while continuing to super-serve our fans,” said Ann Sarnoff, chair and CEO of WarnerMedia Studios.
WW 1984 won't be the first blockbuster to go straight to a streaming service this year. Disney created controversy earlier this year when it decided to add its live-action remake of Mulan to Disney+. The reason the decision was so controversial is that Disney decided to charge quite a bit extra for the movie. It was still released in theaters in some very select parts of the world.
WW 1984 will come to HBO Max at no extra charge to subscribers for one month only. That is quite the risk to take as the movie cost more than $200 million to create. Warner Bros. obviously hopes that many who want to see the movie will still opt to see it in theaters. In turn, it will also be hope adding it to HBO Max will drive up its subscriber base. Since launching earlier this year, HBO Max has struggled to compete with the likes of Disney+ and Netflix.
Source: Variety