The poor state of theatregoing in the U.S. following reopening has caused another film to change course. After Wonder Woman 1984 delayed its release, Warner Bros. Pictures made the decision to also sacrifice the premiere of The Witches — a remake of Roald Dahl's literary classic, starring Anne Hathaway. The title will instead launch directly on streamer HBO Max.
The Witches remake gets streaming release date in 2020
Although its premiere was confirmed for this month, The Witches will skip the exhibition route and have an important fall movie release arrive as a streaming title.
Following in the footsteps of Trolls: World Tour and Mulan, Robert Zemeckis and Guillermo Del Toro's film, based on British author Roald Dahl's book, will make its small screen debut on Oct. 22.
The Witches: Watch the trailer for HBO Max movie
Accompanying the announcement, Warner Bros. Pictures released a new trailer and poster for the film, which tells the story of a young orphan trapped in a rural hotel with mysterious women.
Over time, the boy—played by Jahzir Kadeem Bruno—discovers that the women are witches ready to attack and turn children into mice.
Anne Hathaway, Octavia Spencer, Stanley Tucci, Chris Rock, and Kristin Chenoweth appear in the new film, which comes 30 years after the popular 1990 movie of the same title, which starred Anjelica Huston.