James Bond has tackled many an enemy during his long cinematic career but one foe has proven to be a true thorn in his side. The latest 007 installment, No Time to Die, is likely to be a worldwide sensation but a planned China premiere and press tour have been scrapped due to coronavirus concerns.
The Beijing premiere was scheduled to take place in April but ongoing problems caused by the coronavirus quarantine have halted those plans. The press tour was also supposed to hit other cities in China but those stops have also been taken out of the press schedule. That means the Daniel Craig led action film will be missing out on press opportunities in the world’s second-largest box office market. The coronavirus epidemic has made cinemas in the area shuttered indefinitely amid efforts to get a hold on the spreading of the disease. As of now, there is no word on when business may return to normal as the death toll in China now exceeds 1,600 people.
The release date in North America is set for April 10 and there is no doubt that the film will be a hit but the issues in China will have an impact on its worldwide box office total. The last 007 film, Spectre, made $881 million worldwide and nearly $84 million of that total came from China alone. The box office market in that area is very lucrative, especially for high-profile tentpole releases such as this one. MGM won’t be the only studio facing issues with worldwide launches in the area and it will be interesting to see how it will affect other releases moving forward.
No Time to Die hits screens on April 10.
