While Kilar is sticking to the present release date, Warner Bros. has the option to postpone the film once more. Not only did Sony Pictures move Morbius from January to April, but Disney also dropped Pixar Turns Red, which was set to debut the week following The Batman, off the dramatic release schedule and put it on the fast road to streaming on Disney+. However, The Batman may remain in theatres, as the film industry in 2021 demonstrated that audiences are willing to go out for superhuman films, and Warner Bros. is logically hopeful that its most recognised hero would draw crowds after the tremendous success of Spider-Man: No Way Home in theatres.
If The Batman is postponed, it might have a cascade effect on the other DC movies scheduled for release. Five unique motion movies based on DC properties are slated to be released in 2022. If Warner Bros. postpones The Batman, it might end up in a mid-year slot, which would be a huge achievement for the studio, implying it could take the May 2022 release date of DC’s League of Super-Pets or the July 2022 release date of Black Adam. This would necessitate a deferral of one of those films, logically influencing The Flash and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, both of which are scheduled for release later in 2022.
Currently, it appears that the COVID-19 epidemic may cause yet another setback for The Batman, as WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar stated that they are closely monitoring the situation. Kilar stated at a meeting that they have a positive outlook on the film’s release date and have no plans to postpone it at this time. Kilar stated that they are still carefully considering and analysing the situation, and that requesting a deferral is still on the table.
“We’re positively focusing on everything happening with Omicron. We have a decent outlook on the date at this moment. We will watch it step by step.”
The Batman was originally scheduled to hit theatres on June 25, 2021, but was pushed back to October 1, 2021, due to the COVID-19 epidemic forcing a pause in filming. Then, in October 2020, only two months after the film’s key secret was revealed at DC Fandome, Warner Bros. decided to push the release date back to March 4, 2022. While COVID-19 was given as an explanation, it’s likely that the other factor was WarnerMedia’s decision to release all of its 2021 records on the same day as HBO Max and theatres. The studio would have preferred not to miss out on the financial rewards of a Batman feature, which is undoubtedly the most consistent money maker.
