Disney Changes Release Dates For Avatar 3, MCU Projects, A Star Wars Film And Much More
In theory, planning your release schedule many years in advance is a handy way to give both the studio and the fandom a neat timeline of things to do. The former has clear deadlines, and the latter knows when to expect a cool new movie. In reality, though, all sorts of things can go wrong when you think ahead, which can necessitate a mass reschedule. Unfortunately for fans of various tentpole movie franchises, Disney has done precisely this, reshuffling the release dates of several Marvel Cinematic Universe, "Star Wars," and "Avatar" movies in a significant way (via Variety).
The MCU dates that have been pushed back include 2024's "Captain America: Brave New World," which has been moved from May 3 to July 26. The same year's "Thunderbolts" receives a similar delay, jumping from July 26 to December 20. MCU's "Blade" had already been pushed to September 6, 2024, and has now moved even further to February 14, 2025. Meanwhile, fans of "Fantastic Four" will have to wait for the team's MCU debut until May 2, 2025. However, the biggest MCU delays go to the next "Avengers" movies. "Avengers: Kang Dynasty" has been moved from May 2, 2025, to May 1, 2026, and "Avengers: Secret Wars" won't drop until May 7, 2027.
The upcoming two "Star Wars" movies are still officially untitled, but their new release dates are May 22, 2026, and December 17, 2027. As for the "Avatar" movies 3 through 5, well ... the fans of the franchise are, of course, used to waiting when it comes to sequels. Still, the movies' new confirmed release dates of December 19, 2025; December 21, 2029; and December 19, 2031, mean that patience continues to be in order.
Deadpool and two new movie announcements offer a silver lining
The reasons behind the Disney movie reschedulings vary. Each of the "Avatar" movies needs a huge post-production window, while the massive MCU overhaul seems to largely stem from "Blade" and "Thunderbolts" delays. As for "Star Wars," the movies remain nigh-complete mysteries, as does the reason for their rescheduling ... though, of course, it's worth noting that Disney likely wants to make sure that its massive tentpole movies don't end up competing against each other, and the "Star Wars" films' release dates may simply be collateral in the grand rescheduling.
The news isn't all bad, though. Ever the rebel, "Deadpool's" titular character (Ryan Reynolds) will actually make his MCU debut earlier than anticipated, as the movie takes "Captain America: Brave New World's" May 3, 2024 release date. Disney has also added two wholly new movies to its release schedule. One of them is the live-action remake of "Moana," now set to premiere on June 27, 2025. The other is a third as-yet unknown "Star Wars" movie, which you can expect on December 18, 2026.