電影檔期一延再延 好萊塢開始放棄2020年

《花木蘭》、《信條》……多部大片的檔期被一延再延，許多電影的上映日期都已經推遲到2021年。在嚴峻的疫情面前，好萊塢各電影公司在今年秋冬的上映計劃也都一一成了泡影。

The coronavirus pandemic erased the entire 2020 summer movie season. For a while, Hollywood held out hope it’d still be able to release its biggest movies in theaters this fall and winter. But now studios are finally realizing that probably can’t happen either.

新冠疫情已經讓2020年的整個電影暑期檔化爲泡影。曾有一段時間，好萊塢寄希望於今年秋冬在影院上映大片，但現在電影公司終於意識到這也是不太可能實現的。

Paramount Pictures announced lately it is delaying the releases of two highly anticipated blockbuster films again—this time until 2021. A Quiet Place: Part II will move from Sept. 4, 2020 to April 23, 2021, while Top Gun: Maverick will eject out of its Dec. 23 date and now land on July 2, 2021. Both films had already been postponed from their original release dates this summer.

派拉蒙影業近日宣佈，將再次推遲兩部備受期待的大片的上映日期——這一次將推遲到2021年。《寂靜之地2》的上映日期將從2020年9月4日改爲2021年4月23日，而《壯志凌雲2：獨行俠》的上映日期則從12月23日改爲2021年7月2日。原定於今夏上映的這兩部電影的檔期此前都已推遲過。

Other studios have made a number of similar announcements recently. Universal rescheduled Halloween Kills from October 2020 to the same month in 2021. Warner Bros. pushed Godzilla vs. Kong from November of this year to May 2021.

其他電影公司近期也發佈了一系列類似的通知。環球影業把《萬聖節：殺戮》的檔期從2020年10月改爲2021年10月。華納兄弟電影公司把《哥斯拉大戰金剛》的檔期從今年11月推遲到2021年5月。

Hollywood studios are in an extraordinarily difficult position. If they wait much longer to release their films in theaters, there might not be any theaters left to show the films. As it is, the major theater chains are hanging on by a thread, generating zero revenue while still having to pay rent. But if studios release movies now, they’ll be doing so without the largest film market in the world (the US) and would be inviting uNPRecedented levels of piracy as Americans, desperate for new films, could resort to illegally watching recordings from other countries. Neither option is good, but the latter one would at least help the theater industry stave off total annihilation.

好萊塢電影公司的處境尤爲艱難。如果他們還要等很久才能在影院上映電影，到時候可能沒有電影院可以放映影片了。實際上，現在大型連鎖影院已經朝不保夕，在沒有收入的同時還要支付租金。但如果電影公司現在上映電影，他們將失去世界上最大的電影市場（美國）並將招致史無前例的盜版率，因爲迫切想看新電影的美國人會非法收看來自其他國家的盜版片源。兩種選擇都很糟，但至少後者能幫助影院行業免於全軍覆沒的命運。

Accordingly, several blockbuster films are still up in the air. Disney delayed Mulan again and has not yet announced a new release date for the film. The release of Tenet, the action thriller from director Christopher Nolan that was supposed to usher moviegoers back to reopened theaters, is back on hold as Warner Bros. mulls over a new strategy. The studio could be forced to release the film outside the US—where many theaters have reopened—while waiting for more American theaters to do the same.

因此，還有幾部大片仍然等待上映。迪士尼再次推遲了《花木蘭》的上映時間，但還未公佈新的檔期。導演克里斯托弗·諾蘭的驚險動作片《信條》原本是想用來吸引影迷回到重新開放的影院，現在由於華納兄弟公司在考慮的一個新策略而撤檔。華納兄弟可能會被迫在美國以外的地區上映該片，許多地區的影院都已經重新開放，一邊等待更多美國影院重新開放。

Another slate of films meant to dominate the box office during the 2020 holiday season is suddenly in a precarious position as well. This includes Dune, the long-awaited adaptation of the sci-fi novel of the same name, and Steven Spielberg’s version of West Side Story. Both films are, for the time being, scheduled for worldwide release around Christmas.

原本要在2020年節假日主宰票房的另一波電影也突然岌岌可危。其中包括期待已久的改編自同名科幻小說的電影《沙丘》，還有史蒂文·斯皮爾伯格版的《西區故事》。兩部電影目前暫定於聖誕節前後在全球上映。

These movies would make far too much in ticket sales to bypass a theatrical release entirely. But some relatively less lucrative—but still significant—movies are going digital. Orion Pictures announced lately it will make Bill & Ted Face the Music available for on-demand rental on Sept. 1. If any theaters are willing to show the film, they’re welcome to do so, the company said. But, either way, it’s moving forward with a digital release.

這些電影能帶來的鉅額票房收入令其不能完全放棄在影院上映。但一些盈利能力相對較差但依然重要的電影則轉爲數字放映。奧利安影視公司近日宣佈，將從9月1日起開放《比爾和泰德尋歌記》的視頻點播。該公司稱，如果任何影院願意放映這部電影，歡迎他們這麼做。但是，無論如何，這部電影都會以數字的形式播放。

Until there is a widely distributed and effective vaccine, no theatrical release date should be considered safe. While experiences will vary by country, moviegoers in many locations shouldn’t expect anything resembling a return to normalcy until spring 2021 at the earliest. With all the delays, 2021 should be a big year for film—if the industry survives 2020.

在有效的疫苗能廣泛發放之前，沒有哪部電影的上映日期是能打包票的。儘管各國的觀影情況不同，但對許多地區的影迷而言，最早也要到2021年春天才能有望恢復正常。在這麼多電影被延遲上映的情況下，2021年應該是一個電影大年——如果影院能熬過2020年的話。