• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, August 25, 2022

In its latest cost-cutting effort, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has announced it will delay the theatrical releases of two major DC Extended Universe (DCEU) franchise sequels. 

Shazam! Fury of the Gods,” which was most recently slated for Dec. 21, has been moved to March 17, 2023.

“Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” which was most recently to debut on March 17, will now bow on Christmas Day in 2023.

This is not the first release rescheduling for either movie.

Spacing out big releases serves to spread out the timeframe for the expensive marketing campaigns needed to support them.

With a new Dwayne Johnson movie, “Black Adam,” due for an Oct. 21, 2023 release, and “The Flash” and “Blue Beetle” due out on June 23 and Aug 18, respectively, WBD will now have five big DC releases within 14 months rather than three within six months.

Moving “Shazam 2” again also serves to move it away from the Dec. 16 2023 planned release of 20^th Century Fox’s James Cameron blockbuster sequel “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

Warners’ “Salem’s Lot,” which was to debut on April 21, 2023, no longer has a stated release date.

Other changes to the WBD release schedule include dating “House Party” for Dec. 9, 2022, “Evil Dead Rise” for April 21, 2023 and “The Nun 2” for Sept. 8, 2023.