Paramount moves Top Gun: Maverick, Jackass Forever, Mission: Impossible 7 to 2022
The three films join numerous movies that have pushed back release dates due to the Delta variant
The litany of film delays due to the pandemic continues. Paramount has announced a slate of upcoming films that will be moved back to 2022 release dates. Top Gun: Maverick will now hit theaters Memorial Day weekend in 2022 instead of this Thanksgiving weekend, and Mission: Impossible 7 won’t land until September 30, 2022. Those with a hankering for some Tom Cruise action will simply have to wait.
Not wanting to leave Jackass Forever out, Paramount moved the film from October, with stunts and mayhem now set to arrive on February 2, 2022. This leaves Denis Villeneuve’s Dune and Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch facing off on the once bustling October 22 release date. After numerous delays for both films, they seem to be sticking firm with their October arrival. Following the release of the final trailer yesterday, No Time To Die seems to be clinging to its October 8 release date… for now.
If you’ve been taking on the arduous task of keeping track of every film release date change since the beginning of the pandemic (thank you, Vulture), these three films join a host of films being moved back again due to COVID-19. Swooping in minutes after Paramount announced Top Gun: Maverick’s move, Sony shifted Ghostbusters: Afterlife back one week to Maverick’s former slot on November 19. Sony recently pushed back Venom: Let There Be Carnage’s theater debut by three weeks to account for the on-the-rise Delta variant, and it may move again. Another large beast, Clifford The Big Red Dog, currently has no release date set after Paramount pulled its Sept. 17 opening slot.
Some folks are undoubtedly more worried about going to the theater in the face of rising COVID-19 cases due the Delta variant. According to Deadline, moviegoer comfort level has decreased by eleven points since July, with moms the most hesitant to bring their kids to movie screenings. Their comfort is at the lowest level since April. However, those still interested in viewing films in theaters will have a few choices still, with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings hitting theaters this weekend, Dear Evan Hansen later this month, and Matrix Resurrections due December 22.