Turns out not even Bruce Wayne can escape the coronavirus. After Disney shut down production on a number of big movies, Warner Bros. has decided to shut down production on Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” for two weeks starting today. This is the latest in a series of blockbusters that are pausing production in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
The news comes from The Hollywood Reporter, which reports that Warner Bros. is suspending work on “The Batman” for two weeks starting today. “The studio will continue to monitor the situation closely.” Warner Bros. said in a statement. The news comes as the production was about to change locations and move to Liverpool. Warner Bros. is just the latest studio to halt productions due to the coronavirus, after Disney suspended all their live-action productions on Friday, including Marvel Studio’s “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.” Likewise, Sony paused pre-production on “The Man from Toronto” which had recently announced a casting change as Woody Harrelson had stepped in to replace Jason Statham in the film. Netflix had already placed all film and scripted TV production on hiatus, including season 4 of “Stranger Things” and the Dwayne Johnson-starrer “Red Notice” according to Deadline.
Though other Warner productions like “The Matrix 4” and the latest “Fantastic Beasts” film are still going forward for now, Universal has already put a temporary stop to big blockbusters like Colin Trevorrow’s “Jurassic World: Dominion,” which had started shooting late last month. Turns out dinosaurs can’t close the park, but a virus can. In a statement, Universal said “The studio continues to monitor the situation closely and will make a determination on when to restart production in the coming weeks.”
Turns out, “Mission: Impossible 7” wasn’t an outlier, but the trendsetter, as the Paramount film was the first big Hollywood production to halt back on February 24 as the coronavirus started making its way to Italy.
And it turns out Marvel’s “Falcon and The Winter Soldier” isn’t the only Disney+ show that’s stopping production, as Variety reports that Marvel Studios is pausing all its Disney+ shows currently in production, including “Loki” and “WandaVision.” At this point, how long until it it starts becoming news that a film is actually going ahead with production?
