The South African theatrical release of Black Widow has been postponed and will now launch on 13th August. The movie was slated for a local release on 9th July to coincide with the international launch.
This news comes to us from a release issued by The Walt Disney Company Africa which adds that East and West Africa will still be able to see the movie in cinemas come 9th July.
While no explanation is provided by Disney for this delay it is fairly obvious: the adjusted level 4 lockdown which has been instituted in South Africa to combat the ongoing third wave of COVID-19.
This lockdown takes place between 28th June and 11th July. While it’s only planned for 14 days this would have meant Black Widow being released only on paper as cinemas are closed.
What isn’t exactly clear is why the postponement lasts far beyond the planned lockdown. The 13th August new date is more than a month after the new lockdown is planned to end. It can be assumed that Disney is playing things extra safe should the lockdown level 4 be extended past the fortnight.
All of this is salt in the wounds due to the fact that Disney+ is still not available in the country. Black Widow will be launching on the streaming platform on 9th July for an extra fee on top of what subscribers already pay every month.
If Disney+ was simply available here local Marvel fans could simply enjoy it from their own homes instead of a month plus after the release.
Back in May we attended a showcase for Disney television programming where it was once again confirmed that Disney+ has no signs of launching in South Africa. If only it had been launched then, or any time since, Black Widow would have been available legally.
Legality is another point here as you only need to check any social media platform to see that South Africans have been freely discussing Disney+ shows such as WandaVision, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier and most recently Loki.
It’s clear that Marvel fans, not given a single legal way to enjoy this content, have found “alternate routes” and we have to assume the same will happen for Black Widow.
