Sony Pictures’ upcoming 2023 and 2024 theatrical slate just received a massive shakeup, Deadline reports today, due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike. Kraven the Hunter, the Ghostbusters: Afterlife Sequel, Venom 3, and They Listen are among the impacted films.
With guild actors unable to promote their films, expect quite a few delays from Sony’s upcoming theatrical slate, with dates subject to change even further.
Up first to receive delays is the R-rated Kraven the Hunter, starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Avengers: Age of Ultron). The official red band trailer debuted last month introduced Kraven’s origin story, while teasing several sequences of bloody mayhem. We’ll have to wait a bit longer to see just how bloody Kraven’s origin story gets, as Sony bumped the release fate from October 6, 2023 all the way to August 30, 2024, where it’ll open Labor Day weekend.
The untitled Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel was expected to arrive just in time for the holidays, set for December 20, 2023. Now, this sequel has been set for an Easter release, March 29, 2024. Deadline reports that the film has finished photography but still needs actors for final touches. The Ghostbusters sequel takes over Spider-Man: Beyond the Spiderverse’s release date.
Not all of the schedule shifts are delays, however, as Sony dated Venom 3 for July 12, 2024 when it was recently expected to arrive around Halloween, October 2024. Though, competition around this date suggest that we shouldn’t hold our breaths for this date to hold.
Also impacted by the schedule shift is Blumhouse/Sony collaboration They Listen, starring John Cho (Searching) and Katherine Waterston (Alien: Covenant). While the horror film recently got bumped back a full year, it’s now temporarily removed from the schedule entirely with no set release date. With plot details still under wraps and now no release date, They Listen remains a mystery.
With the AMPTP refusing to cooperate and resume negotiations, it’s safe to assume that we can expect more release date shifts and delays in the coming months.