Joe Wright’s Pan vacates its summer release date, moves to the fall

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

In an effort to find itself a little breathing room from the blockbusters of summer, Warner Bros. has moved Joe Wright's PAN from it's previous release of July 24, 2015 to the much more comfortable date of October 9, 2015. Had PAN opened in July it would have found itself sandwiched between ANT-MAN, TRAINWRECK, PIXELS, and MISSION IMPOSSIBLE ROGUE NATION; a smart move by Warner Bros.

Warner's domestic distribution head Dan Fellman explains the move:

We wanted to give Pan the space to extend its theatrical run, so taking it out of the cluttered summer season made the most sense. Moving the film to the heart of the fall will allow us more time to screen the picture, enabling us to capitalize on what we anticipate will be strong word of mouth.

Director Joe Wright seems grateful for the extra time the push to October will give him to polish off the film:

As you might expect, the fantastical story of Peter Pan involves very complex effects and I did not want to compromise on quality in finishing the film. This allows me and my team the time to complete the movie and tell the story the way it should be told.

While I'm intrigued as to what type of movie we'll be getting when all is said and done, I've seen little from PAN that would cause the film to rocket up my list of must-see films. I've sure this move will open up a lot more possibilities for PAN and more importantly, put more butts in the seats. The month of October isn't entirely bereft of competition however, STEVE JOBS, BRIDGE OF SPIES, CRIMSON PEAK, and GOOSEBUMPS all open within weeks of PAN's new release date; even so, better than going up against Marvel and Tom Cruise.