Hulavuta
keeps the varmints on the run
Movies usually can't be put off for too long, there are other productions to be made, as well as other movies that other studios are putting off, that have to compete for theater space. And there are distribution costs to consider as well as marketing costs. When it comes to movies with a lot of merchandising (think kids films) they also have to make sure that the merchandise, McDonald's Happy Meal toys, etc. all come out at the same time, which is already a tight schedule.They're probably better off delaying it upto the point where a lot of people can go to the cinemas. It's the type of movie where it can still get a huge box office (even if it sucks) by its name alone.
By delaying the release you also have to keep up the hype for that much longer and that costs a ton of money. Even for movies that release on time, advertising costs usually rival the budget of production.
Godzilla vs. Kong itself was already delayed for several months (it was supposed to be released last November), and WB has decided to release all of their 2021 movies simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max. The truth is nobody really knows if movie theaters as an industry are going to survive the pandemic. AMC just barely staved off bankruptcy yesterday. Most of these parent companies are deciding there may be more money (at least more reliable money) to be made in subscriptions from streaming services instead. Home releases were usually always delayed for several months so you had to see movies in theaters, but I suspect mass audiences would stay home to watch a movie if they still could see it on release night, especially now that people are used to it after a year.
EDIT: For instance, Wonder Woman 1984 (also from WB) was projected to make 1 billion (which is more than any of the MonsterVerse movies have made) and they still decided to do the same-date theater and HBO Max release.
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