Disney Announces New Release Date For 'Soul' Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

Disney’s upcoming animated movie “Soul” has become the latest movie to get a new release date amid the coronavirus pandemic. This is a new addition to the growing list of movies that have been shifted by the production giant after seeing the global consequences of the deadly disease.

According to Variety, the movie, which was supposed to hit theaters on June 19, will now open on Nov. 20, later this year. The movie chronicles the journey of Joe, a middle-school band teacher portrayed by Jamie Foxx. He is quite passionate about music, especially jazz. Joe always wanted to be an artist but his life did not go the way he intended it to be. But everything changes when he travels to another realm and helps someone to find their passion.

The movie is being helmed by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Pete Docter. Docter is known for directing movies like “Inside Out” and “Up.” Meanwhile, he has written critically-acclaimed movies like “Toy Story,” “Monsters, Inc.” and “Wall-E.”

The voice cast of the movie also includes Tina Fey, Phylicia Rashad, and Questlove.

Apart from “Soul,” the production company also decided to announce a new release date for “Raya And The Last Dragon.” The fantasy film was originally slated for release on Nov. 25 and will now debut on March 12, 2021.

The film tells the story of a warrior named Raya who is determined to find the last dragon. Awkwafina and Cassie Steele are set to voice the characters of Sisu and Raya.

The new release dates for both movies come a few weeks after Disney changed its whole calendar. Movies like “Mulan,” “Black Widow,” “Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness,” “Shang-Chi And The Legend Of Ten Rings,” and “Jungle Cruise” have already been delayed due to the pandemic.

“No Time To Die” was the first big movie to change its release date because of the coronavirus pandemic and since then the studios have decided to take a step and analyze the situation before changing the dates. The movie theaters have been shut down for quite a while now and due to rising cases of COVID-19 in the U.S., it is highly unlikely that the theaters will be opening soon.

Disney’s “Onward” and Universal’s “The Invisible Man” were the last big movies to hit theaters.