Fans call for No Time to Die release date to be pushed back amidst coronavirus fears
An open letter claimed that the current release date could pose a public health risk – with hundreds of fans set to fly to London for the world premiere
No Time to Die has already faced its fair share of delays – but James Bond fans are now calling for the 2nd April release date to be pushed back further amidst coronavirus fears.
An open letter published on the fan site MI6: The Home of James Bond 007 on Monday called for EON, MGM, and Universal to postpone the film.
It read, "It is time to put public health above marketing release schedules and the cost of canceling publicity events," and also argued that with several of the films publicity tours, including those in China, South Korea, and Japan already cancelled, it made sense to alter the release date.
As things stand the world premiere is set to go ahead in London on 31st March, but the open letter suggests that to not make appropriate changes would pose a huge public health risk.
"Hundreds of fans and celebrities from around the world will be flying to the UK to attend," the open letter read.
"The Royal Albert Hall capacity is above the 5,000 limit that affected countries are banning for public gatherings. Just one person, who may not even show symptoms, could infect the rest of the audience. This is not the type of publicity anyone wants."
The letter ends with the suggestion that a summer release would be more suitable – and argued that most fans would not mind a slightly longer wait if it meant preventing a health risk
As yet, there has been no response from Eon, MGM and Universal.
No Time to Die is currently slated for a UK release date of 2nd April
Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.