Warner Bros, Disney and Sony have put releases in Russia of The Batman, Turning Red and Morbius on hold on the day Hollywood revealed its initial response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Both Sony and Disney have gone further than single films and have paused theatrical distribution in Russia. As studio executives mulled their next moves in light of the unfolding crisis there were also statements from Motion Picture Association (MPA) and Netflix.
“In light of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, WarnerMedia is pausing the release of its feature film The Batman in Russia,” a Warner Bros spokesperson said on Monday (28). “We will continue to monitor the situation as it evolves. We hope for a swift and peaceful resolution to this tragedy.”
The Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz tentpole directed by Matt Reeves was scheduled to open on March 3. The studio will launch The Batman in a number of countries this week ahead of the March 4 North American debut.
A Sony spokesperson said, “Given the ongoing military action in Ukraine and the resulting uncertainty and humanitarian crisis unfolding in that region, we will be pausing our planned theatrical releases in Russia, including the upcoming release of Morbius. Our thoughts and prayers are with all those who have been impacted and hope this crisis will be resolved quickly.” Morbius starring Jared Leto was set for March 24 in Russia.
In a statement issued earlier in the day a spokesperson for The Walt Disney Company said, “Given the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the tragic humanitarian crisis, we are pausing the release of theatrical films in Russia, including the upcoming Turning Red from Pixar. We will make future business decisions based on the evolving situation. In the meantime, given the scale of the emerging refugee crisis, we are working with our NGO partners to provide urgent aid and other humanitarian assistance to refugees.” Turning Red had been set to open in Russia on March 10.
Sony’s Uncharted starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg has opened in Russia although Sony did not provide weekend grosses in its reporting and while the studio did not respond directly to whether it would pause the release, the studio’s statement referred to ”planned theatrical releases” and not current ones.
MGM’s Cyrano starring Peter Dinklage opened in Russia via Universal Pictures International (UPI) and the company reported it grossed $29,000. Also on release in Russia is 20th Century Studios’ ensemble murder mystery Death On The Nile through Disney, which has reached approximately $6.8m according to latest figures. Kenneth Branagh directed the whoddunit and the Oscar-nominated director’s Belfast is scheduled to open in Russia on March 10 via UPI. Universal, Disney and MGM ad not responded to Screen with their plans for these films.
MPA released a statement on Monday evening that read, “The Motion Picture Association stands with the international community in upholding the rule of law and condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On behalf of our member companies, who lead the film, TV and streaming industry, we express our strongest support for Ukraine’s vibrant creative community who, like all people, deserve to live and work peacefully.
“We will continue to monitor the situation, working closely with our members and partners throughout the global creative sector.”
The developments come as Hollywood studios and streaming companies continue to weigh up whether to distribute their slate in Russia. Many cinemas in the country are privately owned, however the question of advertising spend is more troublesome as president Putin’s regime is understood to own a significant number of media platforms.
Earlier on Monday it emerged that Netflix is suspending plans to carry state-owned channels on the platform in Russia, despite a new law that comes into effect in Russia on Tuesday (March 1) mandating platforms including streamers to carry 20 major Russian federal television channels.“ Given the current situation, we have no plans to add these channels to our service,” a Netflix spokesperson told Screen.
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