No Time to Die now, James: Coronavirus delays release of new Bond film by 7 months

Gulf Today Report

The scourge of the coronavirus seems to be wreaking havoc on everyone’s plans, crimping social outings, and contracting attendance at conferences. Apart from hitting the world of fashion, the virus has also affected the world of moviedom, including the iconic, swashbuckling spy James Bond.

Fearing box-office collections would suffer owing to low attendance at cinemas, producers have decided to delay the release of the new Bond film, which was slated for the beginning of April.

The global release of the new James Bond film ‘No Time to Die’ will be postponed by seven months, the producers said on Wednesday, owing to coronavirus fears.

The release of Daniel Craig’s last outing as 007 will now be in November.

The pause comes after two James Bond fan sites had written to the studios behind the film to ask for its release to be delayed over worries that cinemas could be closed then.

The founders of MI6 Confidential and The James Bond Dossier posted an open letter which also said the world premiere for ‘No Time to Die,’ planned for March 31 in London with 5,000 attendees, could be problematic.

"After careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace, the release of ‘No Time to Die’ will be postponed until November 2020," a posting on the official James Bond Twitter account said. It made no specific reference to the virus.

The post said the film would be released in the United Kingdom on Nov. 12 and worldwide, including in the United States on Nov. 25.

The world premiere of the film had been due to take place at the Royal Albert Hall in London at the end of March.

The Bond franchise is one of the movie world’s most lucrative, with 2015’s "Spectre” raking in $880 million at the box office worldwide, while "Skyfall” in 2012 grossed more than $1 billion globally.

‘No Time to Die’ was filmed in London, Italy and Norway and directed by Cary Fukunaga.