COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, has completely upended the standard way of life for countries all across the world, and has even trickled down to affect horror movies. Quarantines, school closures, grocery store panic, and the cancellations of major sports and music events like the NBA and Coachella have all been a part of the pandemic's reach. There is seemingly no part of day-to-day life where the impact of COVID-19 is not being felt.
The film and television industry is no different, and the effects are being felt in a variety of ways. In the past few days, major cities like New York and Los Angeles have announced complete shutdowns of all movie theaters as part of the increased effort to limit mass gatherings of people where the virus could easily be transmitted. This is a major blow to the movie theater industry, which was already struggling to keep audience numbers up in the digital streaming era.
All of the major studios have announced coronavirus outbreak. As of this writing, production on Warner Bros. Fantastic Beasts 3 and Matt Reeves' The Batman have been shut down for at least two weeks. Universal halted Jurassic World: Dominion, which had been underway in Hawaii. Disney has halted work on James Cameron's Avatar sequels, Rob Marshall's The Little Mermaid, and Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ring.
The Impact Of Coronavirus On The Horror Genre
The horror genre is already being impacted in some notable ways. Universal studios is responding to the widespread shutdown of movie theaters by taking the extraordinary step of rolling out current theatrical titles to streaming on-demand platforms early. Horror titles like Leigh Whannell's The Invisible Man and Blumhouse's already controversial available for home viewing as early as this Friday. Universal's decision to close the traditional 90-day window between theatrical release and streaming could have long-lasting impact on the way studios release films. Theater chains have long resisted collapsing this window out of fear it would further reduce the number of people who elect to see films in a theater. Universal's unprecedented decision may transition into a complete overhaul of the film industry once the dust settles and normal life resumes, especially since streaming has only gotten bigger in recent years.
The horror genre tends to be ahead of the curve in dramatizing real world events, thanks in no small part to the low budget/fast production nature of the genre, and the popularity of low-budget horror features on streaming platforms. Full Moon Features has announced that their new movie, Corona Zombies, is already in the post-production phase and will be released digitally on April 10th. Like everything else right now, the impact of the coronavirus on the film and television industry, as well as the horror genre, will be felt for a long time. If nothing else, there will very likely be a resurgence in the genre for Contagion style and post-apocalyptic films, such as 28 Days Later headed toward fans in some capacity, since horror tends to capitalize and speak to societal trends.