Production on all of Universal’s live action films including “Jurassic World: Dominion” will go on hiatus starting this weekend as a precautionary measure amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the studio said on Friday night.
Along with the “Jurassic World” sequel, Universal also paused filming on the upcoming boxing biopic “Flint Strong,” starring Ice Cube and Ryan Destiny. Universal previously delayed the start of production on the romantic comedy “Bros” starring Billy Eichner.
The moves come amid a wave of production suspensions, cancellations and postponements as Hollywood reacts to the spread of the virus that causes the illness covid-19. The moves include the closure of major studio-affiliated theme parks, including Universal Studios Hollywood and Orlando.
Measures to prevent the virus from spreading also include postponement of major Hollywood tentpole movie releases that were supposed to drive the spring 2020 box office. That includes Universal’s flagship franchise “Fast and Furious,” as the upcoming ninth installment, “F9,” was pushed back nearly a year from this May to April 2021.
Other delays include Disney’s “Mulan,” John Krasinksi’s “A Quiet Place Part II,” the Issa Rae-Kumail Nanjiani rom-com “The Lovebirds,” “The New Mutants” from 20th Century Studios and “Antlers” from Searchlight Pictures.
In addition to Krasinki’s sequel to “A Quiet Place,” originally due to open next Friday, Paramount also delayed the film “Blue Story.” These titles all join the previously announced delays for upcoming releases like MGM’s James Bond film “No Time to Die” and Sony’s “Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway.”