‘The Batman’ pulled from Russia

By Frank Pallotta, CNN Business

“The Batman,” which is anticipated to be one of the biggest blockbusters of the year, won’t hit theaters in Russia following the country’s invasion of Ukraine last week.

“In light of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, WarnerMedia is pausing the release of its feature film ‘The Batman’ in Russia. We will continue to monitor the situation as it evolves,” a WarnerMedia spokesperson said Monday night. “We hope for a swift and peaceful resolution to this tragedy.”

“The Batman,” which stars Robert Pattinson as the Dark Knight of Gotham, is the latest take on the Caped Crusader story, which is one of the most profitable brands in movie history. Films based on the superhero have notched more $5 billion at the worldwide box office. The film will be released in most countries by Warner Bros., which, like CNN, is a unit of WarnerMedia.

Warner Bros.’ decision to pull the film from Russia is just the latest reaction from Hollywood regarding Russia’s military assault on Ukraine. The invasion has been condemned by many nations around the world and sparked a series of crippling economic sanctions targeting the Russian economy.

Disney, the most influential studio in Hollywood, also made waves Monday by announcing it would be halting all of its film releases to the country. That includes potential hits like Marvel’s “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” on May 5 and Pixar’s “Lightyear” on June 16.

Netflix said Monday it is refusing to air Russian state TV channels in the country on its service.

“The Batman” opens in the United States and many other countries around the world this weekend.

The-CNN-Wire
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