The Batman Still Scheduled To Open in Russia

By Jamie Lovett

As Hollywood debates whether to pull their films from Russia over the country's invasion of Ukraine, it seems that Warner Bros. will forge ahead with plans to release The Batman there on March 3rd. The film is already generating considerable buzz ahead of its domestic debut. According to The Hollywood Reporter, many studio executives are trying to figure out what to do about Russia as the international community ostracizes the country. The region has been good to Hollywood blockbusters as of late, with Spider-Man: No Way Home earning $44.5 million of its record-breaking box office total there. Of note, Vladimir Putin's government does not, according to studios, control the movie theaters in Russia. However, all media advertising channels are state-run, making it difficult to promote these releases.

No studio has gone on record about the issue. THR quotes one anonymous executive saying, "If the U.S. and its allies want to cut off Russia from the rest of the world, then how would we go ahead and release our movies there?" Another says, "How can anyone advertise their movies on state-owned media right now in Russia?"

The THR report suggests that the distribution of The Batman may have been too far along to reasonably expect Warner Bros. to stop it from opening in Russia. However, several studios may need to decide on upcoming international releases, including Sony with Morbius, Paramount with Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Warner Bros. with Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, and Disney with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Each of those studios is already well invested in promotional marketing for their respective films.

This weekend, the Ukrainian Film Academy called for an international boycott of the Russian film and cinema industries due to Russia's military incursion in Ukraine. The academy launched an online petition asking producers to sever ties with the Russian market.

"We urge you to terminate all contracts with them," it says. "Remember that the business that will use your films pays taxes to the Russian budget, which finances the army that violated the borders of an independent state and buys missiles to bomb the civilian population of Europe."

Governments including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union have levied economic sanctions on Russia in response to its aggression towards Ukraine. There have also been cultural sanctions, with Russia banned from Eurovision and the World Cup. Many platforms are also dropping state-run media networks like RT and Sputnik, and several groups, from Formula 1 to Green Day, have canceled planned events in Russia.

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