The Sopranos feature prequel, The Many Saints of Newark originally dated for Sept. 25 of this year heads to March 12 next year.

Warner Bros is moving The Sopranos prequel pic The Many Saints of Newark from March 12 to Sept. 24. New Line is releasing.

Remember, WarnerMedia announced that its entire 2021 slate is going to theatrical and HBO Max at the same time, but big chains like AMC are negotiating terms on a film-by-film basis. So that means not everything Warners is releasing will play those theaters that are open coast to coast. The assumption by many in distribution land is that this particular movie, a prequel to the Emmy-winning HBO mob series, was destined for HBO Max and that service alone. We’ll see about that. The movie always was envisioned for the big screen.

Most distributors for the first quarter are delaying theatrical releases or putting them directly into the home. This one was moved to September I hear on the possible good chance that more theaters will be open, but also positioning the movie in the 2021-22 awards season.

Alan Taylor directs The Many Saints of Newark from a script by Sopranos creator David Chase and Lawrence Konner. Chase, Konner and Nicole Lambert are producing. James Gandolfini’s son, Michael Gandolfini, plays the younger version of Tony Soprano, the Jersey don his father played. Alessandro Nivola is Dickie Moltisanti, Billy Magnussen is Paulie Walnuts, Corey Stoll is Junior Soprano and John Magaro is Silvio Dante. The cast also includes Leslie Odom Jr., Jon Bernthal, Michaela De Rossi, John Magaro, Ray Liotta and Vera Farmiga.

New Line Cinema’s “The Many Saints of Newark” is the much-anticipated feature film prequel to David Chase’s groundbreaking, award-winning HBO drama series “The Sopranos.”

Young Anthony Soprano is growing up in one of the most tumultuous eras in Newark’s history, becoming a man just as rival gangsters begin to rise up and challenge the all-powerful DiMeo crime family’s hold over the increasingly race-torn city. Caught up in the changing times is the uncle he idolizes, Dickie Moltisanti, who struggles to manage both his professional and personal responsibilities—and whose influence over his nephew will help make the impressionable teenager into the all-powerful mob boss we’ll later come to know: Tony Soprano.

“The Many Saints of Newark” stars Alessandro Nivola (“Disobedience,” “American Hustle”), Tony winner Leslie Odom Jr. (Broadway’s “Hamilton,” “Murder on the Orient Express”), Jon Bernthal (“Baby Driver,” “The Wolf of Wall Street”), Corey Stoll (“First Man,” “Ant-Man”), Michael Gandolfini (TV’s “The Deuce”), Billy Magnussen (“Game Night,” “The Big Short”), Michela De Rossi (“Boys Cry,” TV’s “The Rats”), John Magaro (“The Finest Hours,” “Not Fade Away”), with Emmy winner Ray Liotta (TV’s “Shades of Blue,” “Goodfellas”) and Oscar nominee Vera Farmiga (“Up in the Air,” “The Conjuring” films).

Alan Taylor (“Thor: The Dark World”), who won an Emmy for his directing work on “The Sopranos,” is helming the film from a screenplay by series creator David Chase & Lawrence Konner, based on characters created by Chase. Chase, Konner and Nicole Lambert are producing the film, with Michael Disco, Marcus Viscidi, Toby Emmerich and Richard Brener serving as executive producers.

Taylor’s behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Kramer Morgenthau (“Creed II,” “Thor: The Dark World”), production designer Bob Shaw (“The Wolf of Wall Street,” “The Sopranos”), Oscar-nominated editor Christopher Tellefsen (“Moneyball,” “A Quiet Place”) and costume designer Amy Westcott (“The Wrestler,” “Black Swan”).

“The Many Saints of Newark” was shot on location in New Jersey and New York, and several beloved characters from the original series that inspired the film are featured in the movie. During its six-season run, “The Sopranos”—widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential television drama series of all time—was honored with 21 Primetime Emmy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, and two Peabody Awards, to name only a portion.

New Line Cinema Presents, In Association with Home Box Office, a Chase Films Production, “The Many Saints of Newark.” The film is slated for release in theaters nationwide on October 1, 2021 and will be available in the U.S. on HBO Max for 31 days from theatrical release. It is being distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures and has been rated R for strong violence, pervasive language, sexual content and some nudity.