Ukraine Crisis: Disney, Warner Bros, Sony Pictures Halt Film Releases in Russia

The Batman, Turning Red, Morbius release has been paused in Russia.

By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 1 March 2022 14:25 IST

Ukraine Crisis: Disney, Warner Bros, Sony Pictures Halt Film Releases in Russia

Photo Credit: Warner Bros.

Robert Pattinson in The Batman

Highlights

Warner Bros. has pulled The Batman from releasing in Russia
Several multinationals have already distanced themselves from Russia
Facebook, Twitter took steps to limit the dissemination of information

Disney and Sony Pictures are suspending the release of their films in theaters in Russia after Moscow's assault on Ukraine, the companies announced separately on Monday.

It follows the example of other major firms choosing to pull out of the country since President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion last week.

Warner Bros. has pulled The Batman from releasing in Russia. The Robert Pattinson-starrer was set to release in the country on March 3. “We will continue to monitor the situation as it evolves. We hope for a swift and peaceful resolution to this tragedy,” a WarnerMedia spokesperson said in a statement.

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"Given the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the tragic humanitarian crisis, we are pausing the release of theatrical films in Russia, including the upcoming Turning Red from Pixar," Disney said in a statement.

"We will make future business decisions based on the evolving situation," the US entertainment giant added.

"In the meantime, given the scale of the emerging refugee crisis, we are working with our NGO partners to provide urgent aid and other humanitarian assistance to refugees."

Sony Pictures also said it would pause its planned theatrical releases in Russia, including the upcoming title Morbius.

This is due to "the ongoing military action in Ukraine and the resulting uncertainty and humanitarian crisis unfolding in that region," the company said in a statement.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with all those who have been impacted and hope this crisis will be resolved quickly."

Several multinationals have already distanced themselves from Russia in recent days.

Facebook, Twitter, and Microsoft took steps on Monday to limit the dissemination of information from news outlets affiliated with the Russian government.

More drastically, British oil companies BP and Shell have announced that they are dumping their shares in joint projects with Russian oil groups.

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Read Review

The Batman

Release Date 4 March 2022
Language English
Genre Action, Crime, Drama, Superhero
Cast
Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright, John Turturro, Peter Sarsgaard, Barry Keoghan, Jayme Lawson, Andy Serkis, Colin Farrell
Director
Matt Reeves
Producer
Matt Reeves, Dylan Clark

Read Review

Turning Red

Release Date 11 March 2022
Language English
Genre Animation, Comedy, Fantasy
Cast
Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Hyein Park, Orion Lee, Wai Ching Ho, James Hong
Director
Domee Shi
Producer
Lindsey Collins

Morbius

Release Date 1 April 2022
Language English
Genre Action, Adventure, Drama, Superhero
Cast
Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona, Jared Harris, Al Madrigal, Tyrese Gibson
Director
Daniel Espinosa
Producer
Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Lucas Foster

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Further reading: Warner Bros, Disney, The Batman, Sony Pictures, Turning Red, Morbius, Russia, Ukraine, Russia Ukraine War, Ukraine Russia Crisis, Russia Attack, Ukraine Crisis, Vladimir Putin