You knew it was going to happen, and today Universal and Legendary officially moved Duncan Jones’ Warcraft out of the way of J.J. Abrams’ 800-pound Bantha, Star Wars: Episode VII. The Horde will be meeting in combat in March 2016 instead{
Though it was all but inevitable once Star Wars’ release date dropped out of rumour space and squatted on December 18, 2015, Warcraft – which adapts the hugely popular online roleplaying game into a big screen fantasy adventure – actually got there first, but is now off to the following year. Still, it’s good news for all involved since despite its hefty brand awareness (and audience-friendly, skilled director), Warcraft was likely to get crushed by the power of that galaxy far, far away.
That wasn’t the only date announced today, just before Hollywood largely shuts down for the Thanksgiving holiday: fantasy adventure **The Seventh Son **(picked up from Warner Bros. after Legendary moved its production deal to Universal) will be out on February 6, 2015, marking another entry in what is already a crammed year and a significant delay on its original due date around now-ish.
Michael Mann’s as-yet-untitled cyber thriller joins it, opening on January 16, 2015, followed shortly by low-budget Jennifer Lopez thriller **The Boy Next Door **on January 23. Finally, the studio’s new take on The Mummy, which at last report had Mama director Andres Muschietti negotiating to direct, will join Warcraft in 2016, opening in April of that year.