After being delayed numerous times, the Christopher Nolan film Tenet is finally being shown in some theaters around the world, such as in South Korea. And judging from its performance, it looks like it is going to be a hit during the pandemic.
Deadline reports that Tenet has already earned around $717,000 in previews held in South Korea. The film is only set for a wide release this Wednesday and was only screened on about 590 screens with limited capacity to maintain social distancing.
The outlet also reports that the presales for Tenet have also been encouraging, with all IMAX screenings for the movie already sold out. That said, theaters in South Korea can only accommodate 50 percent of its normal capacity due to health and safety measures.
Vanity Fair reports that Tenet will also open in the United Kingdom on Wednesday and has shown similarly strong presales. According to the publication, Tenet tickets account for 60 percent of the sales for theaters in the United Kingdom.
Vanity Fair also notes that theaters are doing everything in their power to ensure that as many people as possible get to see the Christopher Nolan film. It cites theaters in Ireland, England, Wales, and Scotland arranging as many screenings as possible, ranging from 16 to 29 screenings.
The fact that Tenet can even be screened in movie theaters at all has been a long process, as the global coronavirus pandemic has constantly delayed its premiere. The release date for Tenet has already been changed thrice, with the Aug. 26 one being the final one. The movie was intended to debut on July 17 before being moved to July 31. The next premiere date was on Aug. 12 before they finally settled on the final one.
Even then, the Aug. 26 release date was for international markets and not for the United States. The unconventional decision to release a potential blockbuster like Tenet outside of the United States was brought about by the still ongoing global coronavirus pandemic.
Aside from Tenet, there are also a number of films that have had to move their premiere dates because of the global coronavirus pandemic. These include Marvel’s Black Widow, Warner Bros.’ Wonder Woman 1984, and Disney’s Mulan, which is now going to be shown on the Disney+ streaming service.
Whether Tenet will have a wide theatrical release in the United States and elsewhere in the world still remains to be seen as the global coronavirus pandemic is still a concern in most parts of the world.
According to the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 dashboard, there are now 23,311,719 confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide as of Aug. 24. Deaths caused by COVID-19 are now at 806,410.
In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there are 5,682,491 confirmed COVID-19 cases. There are now 176,223 people that have died from COVID-19 in the United States.