Should Coco postpone to a new date?

[RC821]

Since all movies keep getting postponed to another date due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis, should the Coco movie be postponed?

 

[TheLoonyRebel]

I highly suspect they will do the PPV model like Trolls World Tour is doing.

 

[Hidden Mew]

They may be required to do so. I don't know if theaters are shut down in Japan, but I suspect that they are and I don't think that they'll reopen for July. Hopefully things will be less intense and difficult for everyone, but places like theaters will probably be some of the last things to reopen. A large group of people sitting together to watch a movie is not a safe option. I saw an announcement for Sailor Moon Eternal coming out this September in Japan, but I don't know if that will work out either. There might be a better chance for theaters to reopen by then more so than in July, but it seems pretty unlikely. Even when the situation starts to improve, restrictions would have to be slowly lifted in order to make sure that another wave doesn't happen.

I don't know if they'll do the video on demand release though. Releasing movies On Demand was typical in the U.S. prior to this, so it made sense that they'd use that option for movies set for a theatrical release. That way people could get to watch a new movie safely at home and the studios could still make some money off of their movies as opposed to sitting on them for who knows how long for a regular theatrical release. I'm not sure if that release format is as typical in Japan or if they would be as willing to do it. I wouldn't be surprised if they're holding out on an announcement in the hopes that they can still release the movie as planned. It's practically guaranteed to be delayed at this point, but I'm sure that they want to avoid doing so in order to keep the tradition of a new movie during July.

 

[TheLoonyRebel]

I don't know if they'll do the video on demand release though. Releasing movies On Demand was typical in the U.S. prior to this, so it made sense that they'd use that option for movies set for a theatrical release. That way people could get to watch a new movie safely at home and the studios could still make some money off of their movies as opposed to sitting on them for who knows how long for a regular theatrical release. I'm not sure if that release format is as typical in Japan or if they would be as willing to do it. I wouldn't be surprised if they're holding out on an announcement in the hopes that they can still release the movie as planned. It's practically guaranteed to be delayed at this point, but I'm sure that they want to avoid doing so in order to keep the tradition of a new movie during July.

From my knowledge Japan is usually ahead of other countries when it comes to home video releases so I could very well see them trying the on demand PPV release for Coco. At the very least it'll be better than waiting to release it and will keep the July release of an film going. We shall see what happens.

 

[Everclear]

It's definitely going to be postponed they just haven't announced it yet. They're probably going to wait till the last minute in the hopes that the Coronavirus situation will improve before they have to pull the plug on the new movie.

 

[Islander Princess]

My guess is they ultimately won't have a choice. While I'd love for things to be totally resolved by July, it just isn't likely, especially in the case of places like movie theaters that tend to be more crowded. If movie theaters in Japan still aren't open by July, they'll definitely have no choice, but even if they are (which I tend to doubt), I can't imagine they'd want to risk releasing the movie and losing out on money because people are too nervous to return to large settings/social distancing rules impact how many people can actually see the movie at once.

It'll be interesting to see if they go the direct to video route. Some films in America have done that, but others were simply pushed back (Disney, for example, hasn't really followed the on demand model with their unreleased movies).

 

[TheLoonyRebel]

It'll be interesting to see if they go the direct to video route. Some films in America have done that, but others were simply pushed back (Disney, for example, hasn't really followed the on demand model with their unreleased movies).

Disney has been interesting in what and how fast they've pushed stuff to Disney+. Onward which got what a few weeks in theaters was pushed fast to Disney+ while both Frozen 2 and Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker got pushed after less than a month after their home video release. Star Wars is set for May 4th by the way just announced today. But I certainly understand Disney wanting to wait on releasing their next Marvel films until theaters are widely reopen. On the other hand I can see why Universal/Dreamworks had to release Trolls World Tour via ondemand PPV. There's a lot of merchandise and promotion for the film which would be a huge loss if the film wasn't released in some form. The on demand PPV route at $20 for 48 hours seems to be working well for them as I've seen tons of postings across social media of people doing that. So I could see Pokemon Coco going down that route.

 

[JinksChow]

Disney has been interesting in what and how fast they've pushed stuff to Disney+. Onward which got what a few weeks in theaters was pushed fast to Disney+ while both Frozen 2 and Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker got pushed after less than a month after their home video release. Star Wars is set for May 4th by the way just announced today. But I certainly understand Disney wanting to wait on releasing their next Marvel films until theaters are widely reopen. On the other hand I can see why Universal/Dreamworks had to release Trolls World Tour via ondemand PPV. There's a lot of merchandise and promotion for the film which would be a huge loss if the film wasn't released in some form. The on demand PPV route at $20 for 48 hours seems to be working well for them as I've seen tons of postings across social media of people doing that. So I could see Pokemon Coco going down that route.

They just need a reliable method to distribute Zarude in this scenario, although it can probably be done through Mystery Gift anyways

 

[Islander Princess]

Star Wars is set for May 4th by the way just announced today

Oh I already have it written on my calendar

I guess it'll be interesting to see what studios choose to do as time passes. Like for movies that were already pushed back, if theaters still aren't open by the push back date, will they push them back again or simply choose to release them on demand? I'm definitely curious to see what route they take with Coco, especially since Pokemon really loves that summer release period.

 

[SammyW27]

They'll pretty much have to.

As much as we'd like things to be better by mid-July, it's not looking good. Even without a large number of people being hospitalized and dying daily, places where many gather will still be closed because that sucker is HIGHLY contagious with not way to treat it.

 

[TheLoonyRebel]

And this could prevent my theory that Coco could be released via on demand PPV in Japan.

AMC says it will no longer play Universal Studios films

AMC Entertainment, the world's largest movie theater operator, said on Tuesday it would no longer play any Universal Studios films in any of its theaters globally.

www.cnbc.com

 

[SammyW27]

And this could prevent my theory that Coco could be released via on demand PPV in Japan.

AMC says it will no longer play Universal Studios films

AMC Entertainment, the world's largest movie theater operator, said on Tuesday it would no longer play any Universal Studios films in any of its theaters globally.

www.cnbc.com

Now is NOT the time to be bitter and petty, AMC.
Survive the pandemic now, spats with studios later.
You literally CAN'T afford to lose business....

What's next, not playinbg WB movies because of Soob! or not playing Pixar movies because of Onward?

Heck, they were already having trouble before all this. They are in NO position to so something like this.

 

[TheLoonyRebel]

Heck, they were already having trouble before all this. They are in NO position to so something like this.

Yep exactly. Talk about cutting their nose off to spite their face here.