The COVID-19 pandemic has practically shutdown the film and television industries, and although DC's Arrowverse officially returns this week, Warner Bros. has been forced to join the rest of the industry in reshuffling its release slate for the DC Extended Universe. Those films affected by the pandemic are Wonder Woman 2, The Batman, Shazam! 2 and Flash movie. Here's when they'll now be releasing.
Wonder Woman 1984
August 14, 2020
The highly anticipated sequel to 2017's hit film, Wonder Woman 1984 follows Diana Prince into the 1980s and pits her against some of the character's best villains in the form of Kristen Wiig's Ann Minerva/Cheetah and Pedro Pascal's Maxwell Lord. This film's journey to the silver screen has been an odd one to say the least and the picture has changed release dates no less than four times. Originally slated for release on November 1, 2019, the film was moved back to December 13 of the same year and then to June 5 of 2020 to give the film's director, Patty Jenkins, the release window she had originally requested. The film's current August 14 release date was set in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and could change again as the situation unfolds.
Directed and co-written by Patty Jenkins, Wonder Woman 1984 stars Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Pedro Pascal and Natasha Rothwell. The film arrives in theaters on August 14.
The Batman
October 1, 2021
The Batman's long production history has now stretched about three months further. Originally set to be written, directed and starred in by Ben Affleck, the Batman actor eventually left the film and was replaced by Matt Reeves as the director and Robert Pattinson as the Dark Knight. The project finally seemed to be through the worst of it and had even begun filming before its production was suspended in March due to COVID-19. The director has assured fans that the break in production will not affect its story, which will still serve as a return to the character's noir and mystery roots.
Directed and co-written by Matt Reeves, The Batman stars Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Andy Serkis, Colin Farrell, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright, John Turturro, Jayme Lawson and Peter Sarsgaard. The film arrives in theaters Oct. 1, 2021.
The Flash
June 3, 2022
Originally set to release in early 2018, The Flash is one of the last remaining survivors of Warner Bros.' original DC film slate from 2014. The project has jumped a number of hurdles on its way to movie theaters, going through several directors and even a recent controversy surrounding its lead star. Now helmed by Andy Muschietti, filming was planned to begin sometime in 2021, though its status is now unclear. On the bright side, The Flash has become one of the few movies to have its release dates moved up in the face of COVID-19 related reshuffling, as delays to Shazam!'s sequel have led Warner Bros. to swap the two films.
Helmed by Andy Muschietti, The Flash is expected to star Ezra Miller as Barry Allen, Kiersey Clemons as Iris West and Billy Crudup as Henry Allen. The film is set to arrive in theaters on June 3, 2022.
Shazam 2
November 4, 2022
Originally set to premiere on April 1, 2022, Shazam 2 has been pushed to November 4 of that year, with Flash set to essentially take its place in the release order. The sequel will not feature Black Adam, the character's classic arch-nemesis, and will instead likely see the World's Mightiest Mortal face off against Mr. Mind and/or the Monster Society of Evil in one form or another. It was initially reported that the movie would begin filming this summer, but with the COVID-19 related shutdowns, its director, David F Sandberg, said that this is no longer certain, though they'll still use the time to perfect the film's script.
Shazam! 2 soars into theaters November 4, 2022, directed by David F. Sandberg and expected to star Asher Angel as Billy Batson, Zachary Levi as Shazam, Mark Strong as Dr. Thaddeus Sivana, Djimon Hounsou as the ancient wizard Shazam, Grace Fulton as Mary Bromfield, Jack Dylan Grazer as Freddy Freeman, Ian Chen as Eugene Choi, Jovan Armand as Pedro Peña, Faithe Herman as Darla Dudley, Cooper Andrews as Victor Vásquez and Marta Milans as Rosa Vásquez.