Disney Pulls Mulan, New Mutants, Antlers From Schedule

The coronavirus-shaped hammer has come down on Mulan, New Mutants, and Antlers, as Disney has yanked all three films from their release schedule. Deadline has confirmed that Mulan has been pulled from its scheduled March 27th date, while The New Mutants will no longer release on April 3rd and Antlers is out of its April 17th spot.

As with all the chaos around scheduling entertainment as of late, the changes are due to concerns around the novel coronavirus. Mulan in particular was likely to be badly hurt by the fact that several overseas theaters have closed down, but more importantly that China is completely shut down in terms of non-domestic films. The pricey Disney live-action remake — which reportedly cost $200 million — would have a tall order to make its profit without a release in the Middle Kingdom.

Meanwhile, New Mutants’ release date move is a heartbreaker for people who have been waiting for the oft-delayed film to release. The April 3rd date was set by Disney following its acquisition by 20th Century Studios. Before that, the film was delayed several times in large part due to the Fox/Disney merger, including plans for reshoots from Fox Disney ultimately decided to do away with.

Antlers, meanwhile, comes from former Fox specialty shingle Searchlight and is a science fiction horror film directed by Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart, Hostiles). This is the film’s first release date bump.

There’s no word on when the films will be released beyond “2020,” as Disney is looking at dates further ahead in the calendar year to release the movies. Those delays mean that after this weekend’s Bloodshoot, The Hunt, and I Still Believe, there will be no new wide releases until (currently) April 10th when Trolls: World Tour and A24’s thriller Saint Maud are still scheduled.