Hollywood is taking coronavirus concerns pretty seriously. Granted, there's the obvious downside to cancelling / postponing fan conventions, film festivals, movie premieres, and other high-profile events, but they pale in comparison to the upside, which is avoiding furthering the spread of the disease to crowds of hundreds or thousands gathered in attendance. It's important to mention that the upside to the companies cancelling or delaying these events also has a financial component to it; better to take a temporary loss with the hopes of a longterm gain without the public relations nightmare that would come with seeming to ignore and help perpetuate an epidemic. Shareholders tend not to be too fond of that.
Here's a look at every media-related event that has been cancelled or postponed due to coronavirus concerns so far, in addition to other coronavirus-related write-ups for your perusal:
As of 4/1:
- Wilmbledon 2020 is canceled and rescheduled for Summer 2021:
- Justin Bieber delays Changes 2020 concert tour:
As of 3/31:
- Larry David Has a Pretty, Pretty, Pretty Good Coronavirus PSA
- John Oliver’s ‘Last Week Tonight’ Covers Coronavirus and a Year’s Worth of Insanity
As of 3/30:
As of 3/29:
As of 3/27:
- Disneyland and Disney World Are Now Closed Indefinitely
- Watch: HBO’s ‘Watchmen’ Cast Reunites for a Delightful, In-Character Hand-Washing PSA
- Watch: ‘Contagion’ Stars Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, and Laurence Fishburne Craft COVID-19 PSAs
As of 3/26:
- ‘The Batman,’ ‘The Matrix 4’ Release Dates “Likely” Delayed Due to Production Stoppage
- Golden Globes Alter Film Eligibility Rules in Wake of Theater Closures
- Seth MacFarlane Delivers a Delightful ‘Family Guy’ Coronavirus PSA via Stewie and Brian
As of 3/25:
As of 3/24:
As of 3/23:
- Titmouse Brings Award-Winning Animation Talent to Twitch for ‘5 Second Day’ Livestream
- Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Update on ‘In the Heights’ Hints at Possible Release Date Delay
- Amazon Makes Kids Shows Like ‘Arthur’ and ‘Pete the Cat’ Available for Free
- The 2020 Tokyo Olympics Will Reportedly Be Postponed Due to the Coronavirus
- ViacomCBS Cancels VidCon Amid Coronavirus Outbreak
As of 3/20:
- Netflix Establishes $100 Million Coronavirus Relief Fund Amid Work Stoppage
- ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Gets Early Digital Release; 4K, Blu-ray & DVD Details Revealed
As of 3/19:
- Ben Affleck’s ‘The Way Back’ Getting Early VOD Release Next Week
- KJ Apa’s Faith-Based Drama ‘I Still Believe’ Gets Early VOD Release
- Daniel Dae Kim Tests Positive for Coronavirus, Says He’s ‘Ready for a Fight’
- Cannes Film Festival Delayed Due to Coronavirus Concerns
- Watch Simon Pegg and Nick Frost Concoct a Coronavirus Plan: “Do Not Go to the Winchester”
- ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ Release Date Delayed as Production Is Unable to Finish
- Netflix Reducing Streaming Quality in the UK During Coronavirus Crisis [Updated]
- Watch Samantha Bee Take Other Late-Night Talk Show Hosts Out Behind the Woodshed
- Drive-In Movie Theaters Make a Comeback as Brick-and-Mortar Cinemas Remain Closed
As of 3/18:
- ‘Conan’ to Air New Episodes Shot on iPhone; Guests Will Appear via Video Chat
- National Association of Theater Owners Ask Congress for Bailout Money
- Vin Diesel’s ‘Bloodshot’ Coming to VOD Early Due to Theater Closures
- Why There Probably Won’t Be a Summer Movie Season in 2020
- Watch: Jimmy Fallon Debuts “At Home Edition” of ‘The Tonight Show’ with 10-Minute Special
As of 3/17:
- Toei and Fathom Events have postponed the release of Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna:
- Lionsgate Delays Chris Rock’s ‘Saw’ Movie, Janelle Monae’s ‘Antebellum’
- The Collider.com Podcast: Episode 250 – Coronavirus and ‘Contagion’
- Here’s How to Get in on Extended Free Trials from Your Favorite Streaming Services
- National Association of Theater Owners Urge Public to Keep Faith in Theaters Amidst Coronavirus Crisis
- ‘Black Widow’ Release Date Delayed Due to Coronavirus
- UK theatre chain Curzon will also be closing its brick-and-mortar locations while directing viewers to their digital platform Curzon Home Cinema.
- Jared Leto Reveals He Just Learned About Coronavirus — Here’s Why
- Watch: Penguins Roaming Around an Empty Aquarium Is Absolutely Delightful
- Coronavirus Will Change the Future of Watching Movies
- Watch: Stephen Colbert Delivers ‘Late Show’ Monologue From His Bathtub
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- AMC Theaters Are Closing for “6 to 12 Weeks”
- ‘Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey’ Will Be Released Early on VOD After Theaters Close
- James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’ Sequels Suspend Production in New Zealand
As of 3/16:
- Wanna Help Children Affected By Coronavirus? Jennifer Garner & Amy Adams Show You How
- Regal Cinemas Shuts Down All Theaters Per Coronavirus Pandemic
- ‘Fargo’ Season 4 Premiere Delayed in Wake of Coronavirus
- ‘Saturday Night Live’ Will Delay Next Three Shows Due to Coronavirus
- Mel and Max Brooks Share Adorable, Funny Coronavirus PSA
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- Universal Moving ‘The Hunt’, ‘The Invisible Man’, & More from Theater to On-Demand
- Idris Elba Tests Positive for Coronavirus, Releases Statement: “This Is Real”
- ‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ & ‘King Richard’ Shut Down Over Coronavirus; What About ‘The Matrix 4’?
- Final ‘Last Week Tonight’ for the Foreseeable Future Addresses the Coronavirus
- ‘The Witcher’ Won’t Be Tossing Coins for a While; Coronavirus Pauses Season 2 Production
- Arnold Schwarzenegger Shares Adorable Video Encouraging You to Stay Inside
As of 3/15:
- Olga Kurylenko Tests Positive for Coronavirus, Urges Fans to ‘Take This Seriously!’
- Movie Theaters Ordered to Close in New York and Los Angeles to Combat Coronavirus
- Dwayne Johnson Reveals ‘Red Notice’ Coronavirus Shutdown with Instagram Video
- ‘Onward’ Tops Coronavirus-Affected Weekend Box Office with a Mere $10.5 Million
As of 3/14:
- ‘Loki’ & ‘WandaVision’ Join Marvel Disney+ Shows Affected by Coronavirus
- Warner Bros. Shuts Down ‘The Batman’ for Two Weeks Over Coronavirus
- Hollywood Could Lose $20 Billion Due to Coronavirus Delays
- ‘Jurassic World: Dominion’ Suspends Filming Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
As of 3/13:
- Collider and ArcLight Cinemas 10th Anniversary Screening of ‘MacGruber’ Has Been Postponed
- Apple, FX Suspend Filming on All Shows in Production Due to Coronavirus
- ‘Stranger Things 4’ Production Shut Down Due to Coronavirus
- SXSW Film Competition Going Digital in the Wake of Festival Cancellation
- ‘World War Z’ Author Max Brooks Talks Pandemics and Response: “This Is a Wakeup Call”
- Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert Suspend Production over Coronavirus Concerns
As of 3/12 (and it's a big one):
- America’s Dad Tom Hanks Gives Reassurance in an Update about His Coronavirus Diagnosis
- WonderCon 2020 Postponed Indefinitely Due to Coronavirus; No Decision Yet on San Diego Comic-Con
- ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ Production Halted Due to Coronavirus
- Late Night TV Shows Ban Live Audiences Amid Coronavirus Concerns
- CinemaCon 2020 Canceled Due to Coronavirus Concerns
- Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson Test Positive for Coronavirus
- ‘A Quiet Place 2’ Delayed for Exactly the Reason You’re Thinking
- The NBA has suspended its season after Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert tested positive
- Nickelodeon's Kids’ Choice Awards, scheduled for March 22, 2020 in Los Angeles, is being postponed
- 2020 Juno Awards have been cancelled:
- Beautycon 2020 LA has been delayed until December; other date changes can be found at the link
- The U.S. Capitol Visitor Center is closed from today until April 1st
- ‘Fast & Furious 9’ Release Date Pushed Back a Year Due to Coronavirus Concerns
- NHL suspends its season
As of 3/11:
- Diamond Cancels 2020 Retailer Summit, originally scheduled to take place April 14-16 and held in conjunction with MegaCon in Orlando, FL
- E3 2020 is canceled, originally scheduled for a June 9-11 run in Los Angeles:
As of 3/10:
- The Beijing International Film Festival has reportedly postponed its April 2020 event; a new launch date for the 10th anniversary edition, is expected to be announced in the weeks or months ahead.
- Sony has delayed its animation/live-action sequel Peter Rabbit 2, pushing the release date--March 27 in the U.K., April 3 in the U.S.--back to an August 7th rollout in Europe and the U.S.
As of 3/9:
- A+E Networks will shift its live upfronts presentation to a virtual one (which, honestly, doesn't that make more sense in this interconnected world of ours anyway?)
As of 3/6:
- The 2020 Olympics in Tokyo may go on as planned ... just with no spectators in the stands. The New York Times reports that the event organizers, who spoke with experts from the World Health Organization, are considering a number of worst-case scenarios, including "holding fan-free competitions, with only sports officials and broadcasters as spectators." What's more likely to occur is a "screening process for participants, athletes, fans and others, and to create a risk profile of countries and regions." The call was more of an advisory one; stay tuned to see what the Olympics committee actually decides to do.
- Elsewhere, the financially tally of COVID-19, at least as it relates to media companies, is starting to shape up. MGM is looking to take a $30 to $50 million hit from delaying No Time to Die, while SXSW 2020 is in the process of mulling over a $350+ decision to cancel. As Variety reports, Miami's cancellation/postponement of the UMF makes an interesting case for Austin, TX and SXSW; the event promoters/organizers are likely waiting for city leaders to make the official decision. Politicians and company execs don't want to be responsible for a disease outbreak, but they also don't want to lose out on hundreds of millions of dollars of local income. Factor in the risks of lawsuits due to cancellations, potential loss of insurance (or recoup of some expenses with insurance), and things get pretty murky pretty quickly. Variety has much more on the details, but with SXSW scheduled to start on Friday March 13th, expect a decision sooner than later.
- Emerald City Comic-Con 2020 has been postponed until Summer
- TwitchCon Amsterdam is cancelled
- And SXSW 2020 is officially cancelled
As of 3/5:
- Netflix and Apple are the latest big-name content creators to pull out of SXSW 2020. Screenings for original feature Uncorked and four documentaries--A Secret Love, L.A. Originals, Mucho Mucho Amor, Have a Good Trip: Adventures in Psychedelics--have been cancelled by Netflix; also cancelled was the March 15th panel for Kenya Barris and Rashida Jones' upcoming series #blackexcellence. For its part, Apple has cancelled their AppleTV+ Originals screenings and premieres, like Spike Jonze’s documentary film Beastie Boys Story; a discussion their docu-series Little America with co-creators Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon; directors / exec producers Loren Bouchard and Josh Gad's animated musical series Central Park; Home, a docu-series that goes inside innovative homes around the world; and a screening of Boys State, a political coming-of-age documentary Apple acquired with A24 at the Sundance Film Festival.
- WarnerMedia has also pulled out of SXSW. They'll scap panels for TBS’s Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, HBO’s Watchmen (with Damon Lindelof, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross also out), and HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show with creator Robin Thede. Premieres of TNT’s Snowpiercer series and HBO’s LGBTQ comedy We’re Here have also been shelved, along with an HBO Max session and “Inside Innovation at WarnerMedia” panel.
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- France's health minister extended the ban on large gatherings (5,000+) until May 31st; not March, May. That's likely going to cramp Cannes' style. The 2020 gathering and film market is currently scheduled to take place from May 12th through May 23rd, with upwards of 12,000+ attendees expected. The festival seems to be operating under the assumption that, since no more than 5,000 people gather in one place at the same time, that Cannes will go as planned. Stay tuned.
- Miami has postponed its Ultra Music Festival until March 2021.
As of 3/4:
- Disney recently cancelled a launch event in the U.K. that was intended to celebrate the European launch for their streaming service, Disney+. The service launches on March 24th. They've opted to go with an executive press briefing over the web sometime next week.
- Switzerland’s International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights has been cancelled
- Think Cinema Lausanne (a.k.a. Rencontres 7e Art) has been cancelled
- Greece’s Thessaloniki Documentary Festival has been postponed
- Just today, MGM and the producers of the 25th James Bond film No Time to Die announced that the film would be delayed from its intended April 10th to November 25th in the U.S.
- As of today, Amazon Studios has opted out of SXSW 2020 ahead of the March 13th kick-off; the Austin-based festival is expected to go on as planned.
- Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea are closed until March 16th.
- Universal Studios Japan is closed until at least March 15th.
- Shanghai Disney Resort is temporarily closed.
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Fox News
- Emerald City Comic Con is scheduled to take place as planned from March 12th to March 15th, but stay tuned for more info. [Updated: The ECCC has been postponed to Summer 2020.]
- San Francisco's annual Game Developers Conference has been postponed; a possible event is being planned for this summer
- Italy has banned public gatherings, putting a temporary stop to Paramount’s three-week shoot in Venice for Mission: Impossible 7
- Warner Bros. canceled the New York premiere of Superman: Red Son, scheduled for March 16th