A Quiet Place 2 and Fast & Furious 9 join list of Hollywood coronavirus delays
Universal Pictures said on Thursday that the release of Fast & Furious 9 is being pushed back one year to 2021.
Universal did not say why but the decision follows delays in the releases of several other Hollywood movies due to the disruption in the global entertainment industry caused by the coronavirus.
The virus has closed movie theatres in China, Italy and many other nations, while a ban on travel from Europe to the United States announced by President Donald Trump on Wednesday is seen likely to curtail red carpets and other promotional events for movies and stars.
Known as F9, the action movie starring Vin Diesel was due to rollout internationally in May 2020, but Universal said the new date would be April 2, 2021.
Paramount Pictures on Thursday indefinitely delayed the release of thriller A Quiet Place Part II, which was due to start its international rollout in movie theatres on March 18, because of the coronavirus outbreak.
“Due to the ever-changing circumstances of what’s going on in the world around us, now is clearly not the right time to do that,” the Quiet Place director John Krasinski said in a posting on his Instagram account.
The decisions followed the postponement last week of the James Bond movie No Time to Die to November from April, and a move for Peter Rabbit 2 to August from March.
