The Chris Pratt-headlined sci-fi thriller The Tomorrow War may skip theaters for Amazon Prime Video.
According to Variety, Prime Video is currently in the lead to land the film for a hefty price of $200 million. However, the deal is not final yet, and the exact price it is sold for could still shift in either direction. This comes after Skydance Media screened the film to every major streaming service — including Netflix and Apple TV+. The movie did well in audience previews, but the star power is the main draw for the streamers.
Written by Zach Dean and directed by The LEGO Batman Movie's Chris McKay, The Tomorrow War takes place in a future where scientists draft soldiers from the past to fight in humanity's war against an invading alien army. The movie wrapped production in January 2020 and was initially slated to release theatrically last month before the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic led Paramount to reschedule it for July 23, 2021.
As it stands, The Tomorrow War is currently scheduled to open in theaters two weeks after Marvel Studios' Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and one week after Sony's Uncharted. Meanwhile, studios continue to move their biggest movies to the second half of 2021 in the hope that distribution of the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine will allow theater attendance to return to normal. That leaves little room for The Tomorrow War to move to a less competitive frame, as far as this year's theatrical releases go.
Skydance already sold the Tom Clancy film adaptation Without Remorse (starring Michael B. Jordan) to Amazon and its animated films Luck and Spellbound to Apple, all three of which were set to be distributed by Paramount prior to the health crisis.
Even without The Tomorrow War, Paramount would still have a full theatrical slate this year. In addition to Top Gun: Maverick and Mission: Impossible 7, the studio has A Quiet Place Part II and Snake Eyes: G.I Joe Origins arriving in 2021, along with the delayed Mark Wahlberg sci-fi action thriller Infinite.
Directed by Chris McKay, The Tomorrow War stars Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, Betty Gilpin, J.K. Simmons and Mary Lynn Rajskub. The film is currently scheduled to open in theaters July 23, 2021.
Source: Variety