Daniel Craig has weighed in on the movie's delay to April 2021. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the James Bond film has received a lot of attention. It was one of the first blockbusters pushed to a later date. Once set to release in April of this year, MGM moved the film to November only a few weeks before what would have been its release date. It's likely the company was hoping to avoid further delays by moving No Time to Die so far back. However, the coronavirus has had a more prolonged impact on theaters than anticipated.
Throughout the spring and summer, the vast majority of films followed No Time to Die's lead, resulting in countless delays. Many, such as Black Widow and Wonder Woman 1984 were moved multiple times. As of now, Tenet is the only blockbuster to release since April and could very well hold onto that title until 2021. As of now, Wonder Woman 1984 is hanging onto its December 25 release date, but it seems likely that will change before the end of the year. Unfortunately, No Time to Die once again felt the effects of the pandemic last week with its delay to April 2021. This pushes it back another five months from its November date and a full year from when it was once supposed to release.
This week, Craig made a virtual appearance on No Time to Die's most recent delay:
Here's the deal, this thing is just bigger than all of us. We just want people to go and see this movie in the right way, the safe way. You know, cinemas all around the world are closed at the moment, and we want to release the movie at the same time all around the world, and this isn’t the right time. So, fingers crossed April 2 is going to be our date.
While not surprising, it's reassuring to hear Craig place priority on the safety of moviegoers over making money. It also makes sense to release No Time to Die at the same time around the world, considering James Bond is a global phenomenon. It's clear Craig's aware the movie's April date may not stick, but it stands a better chance there than many films releasing between now and then. The newest delay is inline with MGM's strategy of pushing the film several months at once vs. facing several smaller delays.
As April 2021 seems far away at this point, it's easy to say No Time to Die will release with no problems at that time. However, the coronavirus has proven to be incredibly unpredictable, especially in its impact on Hollywood. When No Time to Die was initially delayed to November, it felt like an overreaction. However, that clearly wasn't the case. With the recent news Regal will re-close all theaters this week, even the 2021 date is far from certain. Luckily, the franchise's star s the delay, which will hopefully help moviegoers come to with it.
