Like many movies during the pandemic, Disney has postponed the release date of Black Widow numerous times. It seems to finally have an official release date, as it was pushed again from May to July 2021. Although this upsets many Marvel fans, it appears to have been a good business decision for Disney. Black Widow will now arrive both in theaters and on Disney+ in July. According to Movie Web, this is a good decision because by waiting two extra months, Marvel and Disney are said to make a lot more money at the box office.

Black Widow was set to gross $45 million when it had its original release date on May 7th, but now the film is expected to make $170 million domestically during its run in theaters. Aside from theater release, Disney+ subscribers will also have the option to pay an extra $29.99 to watch the movie from the comfort of home through the Premier Access program.

Jeff Bock, Senior Box Office Analyst at Exhibitor Relations, stated: “It’s very difficult to gauge the success of one film in terms of the entire industry going forward, especially in this transitionary period. That being said, [Godzilla vs. Kong]’s domestic debut gave both theatrical and streaming a much-needed boost, and its box office performance over the weeks to come will be tracked closely… As far as Marvel goes and other films that have pushed further back into summer, that can only help their cause at this point, as the science of things points to the film industry getting more resilient across the board. That’s excellent news for blockbusters, considering budgets usually balloon upwards of $200M these days.” 

Black Widow is directed by Cate Shortland. Aside from Scarlett Johansson, the film also stars David Harbour, Florence Pugh, O-T Fagbenle and Rachel Weisz. Black Widow will arrive in both theaters and on Disney+ July 9th.