'No Time To Die' Release Date Delay Could Result In A $30-$50 Million Loss For MGM

No Time to Die was set to open next month, but fears of the coronavirus outbreak lead to MGM bumping the movie to November. And while that ultimately might have been the right decision, it's going to cost the studio. Sources state that the No Time to Die release date delay is likely to result in a $30 million-plus loss for the film, which is bound to lead to some double-oh-headaches.

In case you've been living under a rock the last few months, fears of the coronavirus are sweeping across the globe – and Hollywood is taking notice. The first major movie to take precautions is No Time to Die, the latest entry in the never-ending James Bond franchise. As reported, "the ongoing coronavirus outbreak could seriously impact the film's box office, noting that the countries to have banned or restricted large public gatherings — including China, Italy, France, Switzerland, Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea — contributed some 38 percent of the total global earnings for the last Bond movie, 2015's Spectre." The result: MGM shuffled the film from April to November 12, 2020 in the U.K. and November 25, 2020 for the rest of the moviegoing world.

But any hopes of saving the film's box office have to be offset by a new report stating the movie is bound to be costly. Per THR, MGM is due to take a $30 million to $50 million loss on the decision. However, the report also adds that while this is bound to be costly, "even an eight-figure loss will be easier for a film like No Time to Die to withstand considering the broader profit margins on a Bond film." The decision to push the film ultimately came down to the undeniable fact that theaters across the globe have been shut down due to the virus – a fact that "could have resulted in a minimum of 30 percent shaved off the final box office tallies — a possible $300 million out of a likely $1 billion global haul."

Much of the monetary loss of the movie could come from ad buys. MGM is trying to move the advertising it bought for the upcoming weeks to the fall – but that's not going to be cheaper. It costs more to buy ads in the fall than it does in the spring because the fall also coincides with both the new TV season and also football. Speaking of football, MGM is also going to suffer a loss from buying an expensive Super Bowl ad for No Time to Die. When No Time to Die finally arrives in November, its ultimate box office tally will tell the tale. For now, we just have to wait and see. We have plenty of time.