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The coronavirus pandemic has forced Onward and Trolls World Tour to entertain families from home, and now another children’s movie is meeting a similar fate. Disney has decided to pull its upcoming release Artemis Fowl from theaters entirely, and is instead debuting it on the company’s streaming service, Disney+. The kids fantasy movie was set for a May 29 theatrical premiere, but it is moving to streaming after the closure of theaters nationwide.
Artemis Fowl is directed by Kenneth Branagh and based on the popular books by author Eoin Colfer, who published the first in the series nearly two decades ago in 2001. The upcoming Disney adaptation is made for a younger audience, but it features plenty of prominent stars: Colin Farrell as Artemis Fowl I, Josh Gad as villain Mulch Diggums and Judi Dench as Commander Root. Ferdia Shaw plays Farrell’s son, Artemis Fowl II, in his acting debut.
“With audiences largely unable to attend theatres in the current environment, we are thrilled to offer the premiere of Artemis Fowl on Disney Plus,” said Ricky Strauss, president of content and marketing at Disney+, in a statement about the film. “Director Kenneth Branagh and his spectacular cast take viewers right into the vibrant, fantasy world of the beloved book, which fans have been waiting to see brought to life onscreen for years. It’s great family entertainment that is the perfect addition to Disney Plus’s summer lineup.”
This shift to Disney+ marks the second time Artemis Fowl has had to delay its release date. Initially, the film was slated to premiere in August 2019, but it was pushed to later this year before the coronavirus spread globally. When it announced Artemis Fowl‘s move to Disney+ today, the company also changed the release dates for upcoming theatrical titles like Black Widow, The Eternals and Indiana Jones 5. Black Widow will come to theaters Nov. 6, replacing the release date for The Eternals. Now, Eternals will debut in 2021. Indiana Jones 5 has been pushed out two years from now, moving its release from 2021 to 2022. Other Disney titles being shifted around due to coronavirus include Jungle Cruise and Mulan.
Disney didn’t announce any changes to the release date for the upcoming Pixar film Soul, which is set to premiere June 19. But if theatrical releases keep changing as rapidly as they have, it’s not looking promising that the date will stick.
