Even the King of Monsters May Fall to COVID-19

Godzilla vs. Kong is as of now scheduled to burst into theaters on November 20 but will likely be pushed back to May 2021. It appears that due to COVID-19 and the theater shut-downs, November has become a jam. Backed up with blockbusters like Marvel Studios Black Widow, Disney’s Soul, and Universal Pictures’ James Bond sequel No Time to Die, there may be no room for a giant monster fight.

Warner Bros Studio has already pushed back the critically acclaimed Lin Manuel Miranda musical In the Heights from June to next year. Shortly after that, Warner Brothers moved The Batman from October 2021 from its previous release date of June 2021.

Filming on the much-anticipated Matrix 4 starring Keanu Reeves, another Warner Bros. property, was abruptly halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With shooting being delayed and not likely to start again until early July the studio would be hard pressed to make that release date of May 21, 2021. Pairing this delay and the overcrowded line up that is the post COVID-19 November slate will be makes moving the clash of the iconic Kaiju to May of 2021 a real possibility.

Godzilla vs. Kong would be the fourth installment of the Legendary Monsterverse. Godzilla (2014) was a lack luster reboot. Kong: Skull Island (2017) came back and injected some life into the genre. The studio got it right with Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019), the monster epic we all craved. So far, the three films have grossed $1.4 billion worldwide.

The COVID-19 pandemic has put the world on hold and theaters have not been reopened, leaving all dates subject to change at this point. Films like The Eternals, Fast & Furious 9, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Morbius, Spiral: From The Book of Saw, and Venom: Let There Be Carnage are all being pushed back to next year due to the pandemic. It appears the King of Monsters battle with its most iconic foe, Kong, will be the next to join them in 2021.

As of now Godzilla vs. Kong directed by Adam Wingard and starring Alexander Skarsgård, Rebecca Hall, and Millie Bobby is still currently slated to open November 20, 2020.