Why Isn’t Disney Releasing ‘The Bikeriders’ With Tom Hardy, Austin Butler, And Jodie Comer?
A motorcycle drama from Take Shelter and Mud director Jeff Nichols that stars Tom Hardy, Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, Michael Shannon, Mike Faist, and Norman Reedus? That sounds like a good movie that people would want to see! Well, too bad, because The Bikeriders is no longer coming out next month.
And maybe never in theaters.
Hollywood newsletter TheInSneider (via Variety) reports that following Disney’s decision last month to remove The Bikeriders from its schedule, “financier New Regency is looking for a new distributor for the star-studded movie… Insiders at the company simply felt there wasn’t enough time to mount a proper publicity campaign following the conclusion of the SAG-AFTRA strike, especially with the holiday season right around the corner.” The most likely scenario is The Bikeriders coming out on streaming.
Back in October, Disney unset The Bikeriders from its planned wide theatrical release on December 1 after Beyoncé announced that her Renaissance concert film would be released in AMC theaters on the same day. Beyoncé’s Renaissance isn’t expected to perform quite as well as Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour film, but it should open north of $20 million.
Don’t blame, Beyoncé. Blame the industry for only releasing blockbusters or potential Oscar winners in theaters. The Bikeriders looked like a modest hit with a $40 million budget that had little chance of getting nominated for Best Picture. Those types of films are relegated to streaming these days. Bummer.
You can watch The Bikeriders trailer below.
(Via TheInSneider and Variety)