Paramount is shuffling its upcoming schedule of theatrical tentpoles once again. Deadline reports that Top Gun: Maverick will now open on Memorial Day weekend next year, taking the release date originally set for Tom Cruise's other upcoming blockbuster, Mission: Impossible 7. The action sequel will now hit theaters three months later, on August 22, 2022.
In addition to the two Cruise vehicles, Paramount has also delayed Jackass Forever to next year, moving the slapstick reunion from its October 22 release to February 4, 2022. With these delays, Paramount no longer has any theatrical releases planned for the remainder of 2021.
The delays reflect a growing lack of confidence in theatrical distribution amid the current spread of COVID-19 and its more infectious Delta variant. Paramount aims to draw a large audience with each of these films and sees 2022 as a healthier theatrical marketplace to open them in.
Last month, Paramount took Clifford the Big Red Dog off of its September 17 release date due to concerns over rising COVID-19 cases. Meanwhile, rumors have spread about Sony potentially pushing Venom: Let There Be Carnage to 2022, though a new poster indicates that it's still full steam ahead for the sequel's October 15 release date.
Other upcoming releases like Marvel's Eternals, MGM's No Time to Die, and Sony's Spider-Man: No Way Home are still set to debut in theaters this year. After simultaneously releasing Black Widow in theaters and through Disney +'s Premier Access program, Marvel is returning to an exclusive theatrical release for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings this weekend.
For more on Top Gun: Maverick, read about how Tom Cruise would have refused to make the sequel if Val Kilmer didn't return as Iceman.
J. Kim Murphy is a freelance entertainment writer.