The Latest Date Changes 2: The New Batch

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As expected, Fear has been delayed to 5/13/2022. I don't think this will be a problem to any other horror films scheduled for that date, as at this point, we know what to expect with Deon Taylor's glorified straight-to-DVD nonsense. The other Deon Taylor movie that was planned for May 13th date is now unscheduled and probably ends up being a day-and-date title now.

Also, the Billy Eichner vehicle BROS has been pushed to 9/30/2022.

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Some dates that snuck onto Box Office Mojo without notice.

Tar (Todd Field's first film in sixteen years) 10/7/2022
Till 10/7/2022 (the first scheduled film from the re-relaunched Orion Pictures)
Untitled Bee Gees Biopic 11/4/2022 (but seeing how production hasn't begun yet, this could get pushed to next Oscar season)

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Thirteen Lives has been delayed to November 18th.

And I was wrong about Cyrano - it was pushed to the 25th.

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Bold move by MGM to treat the very high-test screening scores as evidence that it's an awards contender and move it to the fall.

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It's Ron Howard. His last few films that were positioned for Oscars didn't get much traction. The delay feels more like MGM not having anything out for it three months before opening as they probably hoped The Rescue would give the film more attention (well, that and Cyrano's multiple delays).

If any United Artists title is going to be an Oscar contender, it's going to be Women Talking. Sure, the big important prestige picture more often than not ends up not being big with the voters but it's going to get a lot of attention between its cast, director, and premise (organized religion is going to be a hot-button topic in the next few months).

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Sony has picked up the global rights for Mark Wahlberg's latest Father Stu and set it for a wide release on April 15th.

Also, RLJE has kicked off the in-festival narrative buying market at Sundance by acquiring the rights to Riley Stearns' Dual.

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I'm thinking Sony probably paid too much. Without Wahlberg, that's a day-and-date movie but of course, religious films somehow still don't do this even though Sony owns the Pure Flix name and streaming service.

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Martin Campbell might have struck out with The Protege but he's coming back with a new one. Open Road is releasing Memory, featuring their favorite actor Liam Neeson, on 4/29/2022. This is a remake of The Memory of a Killer, a film that for a long time I confused with Memories of Murder, even though Bong Joon-ho's had a far superior career than that film's director (anyone remember The Loft with James Marsden?).

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Madea didn't die after all. A Madea Homecoming hits Netflix February 25th. It's also a crossover with the Mrs. Brown's Boys series, which I don't think ever hit the States.

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New dates:

The Outfit 3/18/2022 (from 2/25/2022)
Everything Everywhere All at Once 3/25/2022 limited, 4/8/2022 wide (from 3/25/2022 wide)
Downton Abbey: A New Era 5/20/2022 (from 3/18/2022)

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I think that's a good sign for The Outfit, actually. It's smart to get it away from The Batman, and give it more time to build buzz.

I would think that Downton Abbey would move to Mother's Day weekend instead of the 20th, though (I expect a sizable decrease no matter where it opens, however. Then again, the numbers I expect for it - an opening around 18 m and a total around 45 m - are just a very slight decrease from what I expected the first to open to and gross in total.)

In other news, Lionsgate is allegedly looking to acquire STX. I assume (along with The Outfit moving to its date) that Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guere and The Contractor will move because of this.

Finally, The Cursed is being released on Febuary 18th. I'm not sure how wide the release is.

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LD Entertainment usually goes semi-wide to low wide but they haven't self-distributed a film in a long time. I would not expect much box office but I have to admit The Cursed is a much better title than Eight for Silver, which was the shooting title. That makes it sound like a 2000's straight-to-DVD action film overloaded with violence and machismo.

And The Outfit would flop at any date. It sounds like artsy for the action film and too middlebrow for the indie crowd.

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Latest Sundance acquisitions:
Dual: RLJE (US), Universal (Global)
Living: Sony Pictures Classics (Worldwide excluding UK)
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande: Searchlight/Hulu (US)
Cha Cha Real Smooth: Apple (Worldwide)
Resurrection: IFC/Shudder (North America)
Brian and Charles: Focus (US/Canada), Universal (Global)
Am I Ok?: Warner Brothers/HBO Max (Worldwide)
Free Chol Soo Lee: MUBI (Worldwide)
Watcher: IFC Midnight/Shudder (North America), Focus (Remaining International Territories)
892: Bleecker Street (US)
Emily the Criminal: Roadside/Vertical (North America), Universal (Remaining International Territories)
A Love Song: Bleecker Street/Stage 6 (Worldwide)
Call Jane: Roadside (US)
Sharp Stick: Utopia (US)
Honk for Jesus, Save Your Soul: Focus/Peacock (Worldwide)
God's Country: IFC (North America)
Piggy: Magnet/Magnolia (US)
Lenor Will Never Die: Music Box (North America)
Descendent: Netflix (Global)
Aftershock: ABC News/Hulu/Onyx Collective (Global)

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Earlier this week, I saw an HBO Max ad that revealed that the Father of the Bride and House Party remakes would be debuting there. Also, the Batgirl movie will be exclusive to the service.

So will Warner Bros.' future strategy be that anything that's not Snydercut-aimed or a sequel to a big blockbuster will be a HBO Max title?

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After Yang hits theatres on March 4th and will arrive on Showtime not long after. I can't be the only person who sees the title and immediately think it's about Andrew Yang, the former Presidential and mayoral candidate who was popular on Reddit and nowhere else.