In light of the coronavirus outbreak, which has now been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation, the film industry across the world has been affected, with events and releases being postponed. Starting with the delay in Sooryavanshi release, to Hrithik Roshan and Salman Khan’s tours being postponed and Disney releases getting pushed, here’s how both Bollywood and Hollywood are feeling the impact:
Bollywood
Dharma Productions Suspends Filming, Admin Work
Karan Johar’s production house Dharma Productions has decided to put a halt to filming in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In a statement released on Twitter, the company announced it has “suspended all administrative and production work until further notice.” “This decision has been taken keeping in mind the safety of all and we are complying with all the precautionary measures suggested by the government to minimise the risk of exposure to our cast, crew, workers and audience,” it added.
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Producer Bodies Decide to Stop Film and TV Shoots
The Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) on Sunday, 15 March, announced that the shooting for all films, TV shows and web series would be suspended from 19 March and 31 March as a precautionary measure against the spread of the coronavirus. The organisation issued a letter saying this move was in cooperation with a recent advisory by India’s Health Ministry, which called for the temporary closure of educational establishments, gyms, museums, social and cultural centres, swimming pools and theatres.
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Sooryavanshi Release Pushed
Akshay Kumar and Rohit Shetty have announced that the release of their upcoming film Sooryavanshi has been postponed until further notice. Producers Rohit Shetty and Karan Johar have issued a statement saying,
“We have been as excited as you are to present the film to you and your family, but due to the recent outburst of the COVID-19 (coronavirus), we, the makers, have decided to postponse the release of your film ‘Sooryavanshi’, keeping in mind the health and safety of our beloved audience”.
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PVR to Shut Down Theatres in Delhi, Kerala & J&K
PVR has issued a statement, confirming that the chain in Delhi, Kerala and Jammu and Kashmir will be closed. “This is with reference to advisory issued by states of Kerala, Delhi and UT of Jammu & Kashmir to shut down all cinema Halls till 31st March, 2020 as a precautionary and preventive measure to prevent spread of COVID-19,” the statement read.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray also issued an advisory on Friday saying that theatres and gyms will be shut in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur.
Cinema halls and multiplexes have also been ordered to shut down in Gujarat, Karnataka, Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Punjab and Rajasthan.
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Tillotama Shome-Starrer ‘Sir’ Postponed
Rohena Gera’s film titled Sir starring Tillotama Shome and Vivek Gomber was slated for a 20 March release in India. However, makers of the film have taken into cognizance the latest developments around coronavirus and the advisory issued by the Health Ministry and decided to postpone the release of the film. The new release date hasn’t been announced yet.
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Hrithik Roshan, Salman Khan Postpone US Tours
Amongst other events that are being postponed and cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak, Hrithik Roshan and Salman Khan’s international tours have also been postponed. Hrithik was to interact with his fans in Chicago, New Jersey, Dallas, San Jose, Washington and Atlanta, as a part of the nine-day tour which was supposed to begin on 10 April.
However, the same stands postponed. “Hrithik and the organisers will figure out new dates once the global health scenario is stable. The tour stands postponed as of now,” a source told Mumbai Mirror.
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Ansuhman Jha's 'Lord Curzon Ki Haveli' Shoot Deferred
Ansuhman Jha, known best for his role in Dibakar Banerjee’s Love, Sex Aur Dhokha was to make his directorial debut through Lord Curzon Ki Haveli. The film has Arjun Mathur, Rasika Dugal and Parambrata Chatterjee in its ensemble. The crew was scheduled to shoot for three weeks in the UK. However, the steady rise of coronavirus in a few countries and the imposition of travel restrictions have deferred the shoot.
“We were to fly out on 16 March and begin shoot on 21 March at Kent but given the current scenario, we don’t wish to put anyone at risk. And therefore we are postponing the shoot,” said Anshuman.
Deepika Padukone Cancels Paris Week Appearance
Deepika Padukone has called off her plans to attend the ongoing Paris Fashion Week owing to the global coronavirus outbreak. The Padmaavat actor was invited by luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton to attend their show at the Paris Fashion Week, which is due to run till 3 March.
A spokesperson confirmed the news in a statement saying, “Deepika Padukone was scheduled to travel to France to attend Louis Vuitton's FW2020 show at the ongoing Paris Fashion Week but has had to cancel her trip with news coming in that the coronavirus epidemic has now entered a new stage in France.”
Hollywood
Disney Delays Release of Mulan, Antlers & The New Mutants
Coronavirus is on a steady rise in certain countries and countries have advised travel restrictions. Following the health advisories, Walt Disney Company has pushed the release of three of its films - Mulan, The New Mutants and Searchlight’s horror pic Antlers. While Mulan and The New Mutants were slated to release on 27 March and 3 April respectively, Antlers was scheduled to hit theatres on 17 April. Revised dates are yet to be announced.
The release of Universal Pictures’ Fast and Furious 9 has also been deferred. The ninth installment of Fast and Furious in now slated to release on 2 April 2021.
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Tom Hanks and Wife Rita Wilson Test Positive For Coronavirus
On Thursday, Tom Hanks took to Twitter to announce that he and his wife, Rita Wilson, have tested positive for Coronavirus. They encountered symptoms after travelling to Australia, where they were set to begin production on a film based on the life of Elvis Presley.
“We Hanks’ will be tested, observed and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time-approach, no?,” he said in a tweet.
Later, he shared health updates and said that they’re “taking it one-day-at-a-time.”
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Ellen, Jimmy Fallon Suspend Filming Before Live Audience
Several television shows in the United States have decided not to tape in front of a live studio audience following the spread of the novel coronavirus through the country. Ellen DeGeneres, host of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, announced on Twitter that she will continue shooting her talkshow without a studio audience. She apologised saying she was “doing this for the health of my fans, my staff and my crew.”
Late night shows have taken similar precautions. CBS’ Late Show With Stephen Colbert, NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night With Seth Meyers, Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver are among those who have also announced that they would tape their broadcasts in theatres and studios without a live audience.
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Cannes Film Fest to be Cancelled if Coronavirus Outbreak Worsens
Asserting that the team of Cannes Film Festival was “not oblivious” to the coronavirus pandemic, the president of the film festival said the 2020 edition will be cancelled if the outbreak worsens. The 73rd annual festival is scheduled to take place from 12-23 May.
Festival president Pierre Lescure said he is “reasonably optimistic” about going ahead with the movie gala at present, according to The Guardian, which quoted French publication Le Figaro. Lescure said, “We remain reasonably optimistic in the hope that the peak of the epidemic will be reached at the end of March and that we will breathe a little better in April. But we are not oblivious. If not, we will cancel.”
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Bond Film ‘No Time To Die’ Pushed
The release of Daniel Craig’s latest Bond film No Time to Die has been pushed to November amid fears over the coronavirus spread. The film, which was scheduled for a 2 April release in the UK followed by a release on 10 April worldwide, has now been postponed to November as concerns for public health have taken precedence. It will now release in the UK on 12 November and on 25 November in the US.
No Time to Die has been made on a budget of over $200 million and will need to perform well in the international markets. Since, the spread of coronavirus has led to the closure of several cinemas in countries such as Italy, South Korea, China and Japan, the postponement of the release seems to be a sensible decision.
Katy Perry’s Wedding on Hold
Katy Perry was supposed to have a quiet wedding with Orlando Bloom in Japan this year. However, according to People, the coronavirus has put that plan on hold. “Katy was actually really excited about walking down the aisle pregnant,” a source told the magazine. “They were both so elated that all the wedding details were finally coming together, but they are hitting pause because of coronavirus.”
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