Making further changes to their upcoming slate, DreamWorks Animation and partner 20th Century Fox has moved the release date of Kung Fu Panda 3 from December 23, 2015 to March 18, 2016 because of expected domination by Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Fox says it didn’t want the movie to get caught in the wake of J.J. Abrams Star Wars upcoming sequel which opens in theatres six days earlier, on December 18. This much-anticipated movie, from Lucas films and Disney, is certain to appeal heavily to families over the year-end holidays.
“This is part of our constantly re-evaluating the competitive landscape, as we do with all of our films,” said Fox domestic distribution, Chief Chris Aronson in a statement.
DWA is planning to take animated tentpole B.O.O. – Bureau of otherwordly Operations off the summer 2015 calendar, according to sources, although that film has yet to be officially moved.
The Kung Fu Panda 3 starring Jack Black isn’t the only movie to have ceded ground to the Star Wars juggernaut. Universal last year pushed Warcraft out of the December 18, 2015, slot in favour of March 2016.
Another DWA film, Boss Baby, was already slotted to open on March 18, 2016. The shuffling comes as DWA ponders its fate after two unsuccessful attempts to sell. Last week, merger talks fell through with Hasbro, while talks collapsed in September with Japanese giant Softbank.