By Jake Coyle, Film Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --Warner Bros. on Tuesday delayed the summer release of "Wonder Woman 1984" and removed the adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's "In the Heights" from its schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic.
With much of Hollywood's spring release calendar already vacated due to the virus, major summer movies are also increasingly reshuffling. "Wonder Woman 1984," the sequel to 2017's "Wonder Woman," will now hit theaters on Aug. 14 instead of June 5.
"In the Heights," directed by "Crazy Rich Asians" filmmaker Jon M. Chu, had been slated for June 26 but now isn't dated for release. Miranda, in a recent livestream interview with Rosie O'Donnell, said the score was being recorded when post-production work slowed due to the outbreak.
"There's a lot that remains to be done on that movie," said Miranda. "We were finishing the score and the mixing and just getting the music exactly right."
The studio also took several other films off its release schedule including the "Scooby-Doo" movie "Scoob," previously planned for May 15, and the James Wan thriller "Malignant," previously set for Aug. 14.
Several likely spring and summer blockbusters have already been delayed, including Marvel's "Black Widow" (previously May 1, now unscheduled); the "Fast and Furious" movie "F9," (now slated for 2021); the Bond movie "No Time to Die" (moved to November); and "A Quiet Place Part II" (not currently dated).
While some recent releases have moved to streaming platforms or on-demand with theaters closed, Hollywood's top productions have opted to wait until they can play in cinemas.
"We made 'Wonder Woman 1984' for the big screen and I believe in the power of cinema," director Patty Jenkins said on Twitter. "In these terrible times, when theater owners are struggling as so many are, we are excited to re-date our film to August 14th, 2020, in a theater near you, and pray for better times for all by then."
California governor signs law to protect children from social media addiction
California will make it illegal for social media platforms to knowingly provide addictive feeds to children without parental consent beginning in 2027 under a new law Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Friday.
California follows New York state, which passed a law earlier this year allowing parents to block their kids from getting social media posts suggested by a platform's algorithm. Utah has passed laws in recent years aimed at limiting children's access to social media, but they have faced challenges in court.
The California law will take effect in a state home to some of the largest technology companies in the world. Similar proposals have failed to pass in recent years, but Newsom signed a first-in-the-nation law in 2022 barring online platforms from using users' personal information in ways that could harm children. It is part of a growing push in states across the country to try to address the impacts of social media on the well-being of children.
"Every parent knows the harm social media addiction can inflict on their children — isolation from human contact, stress and anxiety, and endless hours wasted late into the night," Newsom said in a statement. "With this bill, California is helping protect children and teenagers from purposely designed features that feed these destructive habits."
The law bans platforms from sending notifications without permission from parents to minors between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m., and between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays from September through May, when children are typically in school. The legislation also makes platforms set children's accounts to private by default.
Opponents of the legislation say it could inadvertently prevent adults from accessing content if they cannot verify their... Read More