‘The Great Gatsby’ Pushed From Christmas 2012 To Summer 2013
The year-end prestige movie season was looking especially thick this year, with Peter Jackson’sThe Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Tom Hooper’sLes Misérables, Kathryn Bigelow’sZero Dark Thirty, and Quentin Tarantino’sDjango Unchainedall clamoring for a piece of the box office. As of today, however, one filmmaker who’ll be sitting out that bloodthirsty competition isBaz Luhrmann.
Warner Bros. has just moved Lurhmann’sF. Scott FitzgeraldadaptationThe Great Gatsbyfrom December 25 intoSummer 2013in a surprising but understandable move.The Great Gatsbylooked at one point like it’d be one of the most formidable contenders in this winter’s awards season, but it seems execs are hoping that a summer release will translate to a wider each.
With its literary pedigree and its award-winning cast (includingCarey Mulligan,Tobey Maguire, andLeonardo DiCaprio),The Great Gatsbyseems a more natural fit for winter than summer. On the other hand, it could work as a nice bit of counter-programming against the usual glut of action sequels. Other Warner Bros. pictures set to open next summer includeThe Hangover Part III(May 24),Man of Steel(June 14),Pacific Rim(July 12), and the300sequel (August 2).
In the meantime, those who were eager to seeThe Great Gatsbyshould have some suitable substitutes to look forward to. DiCaprio fans can check out his villainous turn inDjango Unchained, while those hankering for a big-screen literary adaptation can turn their attentions toLes MisérablesandAnna Karenina(in November).
