Colin Firth’s latest World War II movie, Operation Mincemeat, has had its release postponed due to the concern over the surge in Covid-19 cases in the UK, due to the Omicron variant.
The film is directed by Shakespeare in Love director John Madden and also stars Matthew Macfadyen (Succession), Jason Isaacs (the Harry Potter movies), Kelly Macdonald (Boardwalk Empire), Simon Russell Beale as Winston Churchill and Johnny Flynn as Bond writer Ian Fleming.
Operation Mincemeat is a spy drama detailing the curious efforts to keep the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943 a secret. It clearly has an older target audience than something like Spider-Man: No Way Home, which looks set to break pandemic box office records.
The release date has been pushed back by Warner Bros, by more than three months, from January 14 to April 22 and could be the first of many postponements. Cinemas are not currently part of the UK’s vaccine passport programme, which applies to nightclubs and large venues, but this could change with the latest surge.
While you’re waiting for April, you will be able to get your World War II fix on Netflix, when Munich: The Edge of War comes out on January 21, 2022. The film stars 1917’s George MacKay, Jeremy Irons, Jessica Brown Findlay, August Diehl and Sandra Huller. It’s based on a book by Robert Harris.
The postponement and subsequent streaming release of erotic thriller Deep Water does seem to be an indication that movies for grown-ups are more likely to be affected by the pandemic than blockbusters or family movies.
If you’re looking for something to tide you over while you wait until Operation Mincemeat is released in April, check out our guides the best war movies and the best spy movies.