By: John M Jerva

I don’t believe that there will be any new releases hitting the theaters this year as everyday sees news of yet another major film being pushed back till next year. The latest casualty is Paramount’a long awaited sequel Top Gun: Maverick.

The film which sees the iconic return of Tom Cruise as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell was originally supposed to hit this past June but was delayed until December due to the…well you know why.

Now word comes that the movie will no be pushed back either farther as the sequel won’t see the light of day until July 2nd of next year.

“We truly believe that there is no movie-viewing experience like the one enjoyed in theatres,” Paramount’s President of Domestic Distribution Chris Aronson, and President of International Theatrical Distribution Mark Viane, said in a statement. “We are committed to the theatrical experience and our exhibition partners, and want to stress that we are confident that, when the time comes, audiences everywhere will once again enjoy the singular joy of seeing Paramount films on the big screen.”

Paramount’s A Quiet Place: Part II also suffered the sane fate and won’t be released until April 22rd of next year.

Top Gun: Maverick is set in a world of drone technology and fifth-generation fighters along with exploring the end of the era of dogfighting. Maverick (once again played by Tom Cruise) is now a flight instructor, who takes Bradley Bradshaw (played by Miles Teller), the son of Maverick’s late partner Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, under his wing. The film also stars Jon Hamm, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell and Ed Harris.

Expect more delays for any other titles still listed with a 2020 release date. At least we still have Digital premieres to look forward to and like I said, with no new product in theaters, these lesser known movies should benefit from it and find wider audiences.