The release of the new James Bond movie has been delayed due to coronavirus fears.
The producers of No Time To Die said they pushed back the release by seven months after “careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace.”
This announcement comes days after the founders of two 007 fan sites called on the film studios to delay its release.
It had originally been due to come out on April 3 but will now be out in the UK on November 12 and in the US on November 25. The world premiere had been scheduled to take place on March 31 at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
“Just one person, who may not even show symptoms, could infect the rest of the audience. This is not the type of publicity that anyone wants,” the founders of M16 Confidential and the James Bond Dossier wrote, in an open letter.
There is currently no ban on concerts or large public gatherings in the UK. However, France has called a temporary halt to all indoor events with more than 5,000 people in attendance and Switzerland has banned gatherings of more than 1,000 people until March 15.
Amid increased concerns about people gathering together, No Time to Die is the first major film to change its schedule and some film analysts have suggested the coronavirus could wipe $5bn off the global box office.
The last Bond film, Spectre, took almost $900m at worldwide box offices in 2015.
Oscar winner Rami Malek co-stars as “a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology”, in the 25th Bond film.
The Beijing premiere and Chinese promotional tour had been scheduled for April but were cancelled in February and the Chinese cinema releases of the new Mulan and Sonic the Hedgehog films were also delayed as the coronavirus continues to spread.
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Written by Rekha Kulen
