IF MGM/Universal/EON decided to release the movie as an online digital rental, similar to what happened with The Interview, but still planned to release it in cinemas come November, would you be tempted to watch it, or would you prefer your first experience of it to be on the big screen?
I might need a glass or two of that tonight to drown my angerā¦lol!
Watch it! Iām as big a movie fan there is and even I only go to the theater about once every two years nowadays. Iād fill up the house with friends and keep the Vespers flowing.
That will never happen though because people would just point their 4K cameras to their screen and the movie would be āoutā long before November.
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Iād watch it on digital rental, absolutely.
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I would wait (unless the conversations here were too good to miss out on), and then watch it on the big screen as it was meant to be viewed.
That said: I bet bad word of mouth (even a mild case) would kill some peopleās desire to see it on the big screen (and this cohort would be on top of those people who would much prefer to see it at home in the first place, but end up going to a theatre).
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Sad to hear this, as I was really excited but understand why theyāve done it.
I think the decision is made with safety but also money in mind. Why make half the amount in April-July, when you can make the full expected box office in November-Feb.
This is a real let down. My parents were going to be visiting me from out of state around the April release date and they and my wife and I were all going to go see No Time To Die together. (Weāve actually been able to do it for the past two Daniel Craig Bond films.) Now, thatās not going to happen. 
On the plus side, though, weāre going to go see a special showing of Goldfinger on the big screen while theyāre here. That hasnāt changedā¦yet.
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So I guess the āoff topicā is now on topic again.
When I started my post about exponential growth last night, I thought thereās no way theyāre postponing this release. But by the time I finished, I thought, āhow can they possibly release this next month?ā I had convinced myself of something I didnāt want to believe.
AMC has already started automatically refunding my ticket purchases. Against all hope, I pre-ordered the NTTD soundtrack hoping that might squeak through on March 27th and Iāll at least get some sort of Bond fix. I like the idea of a new end credits song and some new posters. Years from now this will have given us more than it has taken away. Credit EON for taking the initiative on this, both for public health and, to be honest, investment return. Releasing a blockbuster with only half the worldās theaters open doesnāt do anybody any good. Theyād need all of U.S. box office to recoup costs, and then foreign markets for profit. Releasing it in April effectively negates all profit.
Other releases are bound to be affected. Mulan has already been delayed in foreign markets. Weāll see what Marvel does with Black Widow in about a month. My school has already said that if they close, it will be an automatic 14 days. (As Iām typing this, an NTTD TV spot plays on NBC SC in the background.)
If this truly becomes a health pandemic, look for March Madness, Major League Baseball, and European soccer leagues to limit attendance, or postpone events. Oh! And then thereās the Olympics! They may delay that a year, rather than flat out cancel. I read theyāll decide that by May 1st.
However, for movies, delaying release helps profits, but in sports events Iām not sure the same maxim holds. And they donāt have to consider world markets as much as movies do. But until this levels off or thereās a vaccine or some sort of limiting logistics curve kicks in, who knows what will happen.
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With sports events, youād think they would simply take place with no attendance, which is already the case in Italy.
I was wondering about that. Happened with a baseball game last year, though I forget the reason.
But actually with sports events the audience is a huge part of the entire venture. Itās one thing to have a match or two in an empty stadium - but hardly the entire Olympics or a football league.
Iād also prefer to wait until theatrical release. However, if itās being streamed word will get out and before long it would be near impossible to avoid spoilers.
So, if they streamed it in some way Iād feel blackmailed into watching and would partake. But I hope they donāt do this so we all see it simultaneously(ish).
I think also something key to bear in mind - major cinema chains will refuse to carry the film if itās already been released on streaming
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Or certainly not commit that many screens to it. Tbh thereās no way theyāll stream it imo, unless by November things are worse rather than better. But then all bets are off.
For major chains itās a matter of principle. Any film that doesnāt have a 90 day (US) or 16 weeks (UK) theatrical exclusivity they will refuse to show on any screens. Thatās why there was this whole debate with The Irishman and Roma and other Netflix titles. Only cinemas that would screen them are indie/arthouse locations.
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I am very curious about another thing:
what will happen with all the movie magazines and their april issues which will be full of Bond and NTTD? I assume that itās already printed and ready for release?
And what about the books about Bond and NTTD which will be released end of the month and next month, will they wait untill october/november for release?
I already have my subscriber copy of the Total Film Bond edition and I know itāll be in shops tomorrow.
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Just posted my own version of that story here:
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The new TASCHEN book has been delayed.
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Thanks for the replies.
So if weāre lucky we get in april, but also maybe in november movie magazines covering Bond, because I canāt imagine that when the film is finally released they wonāt mention anything about it.