The Oscar race has taken another turn. George Clooney's "The Monuments Men" has been delayed until 2014.
Sony announced on Tuesday that the film would not be ready for its Dec. 18 release date. As Variety reported, "the news surprised the industry, especially since Sony has been so high on the film, having begun marketing the film with two theatrical trailers already. The studio also hired an awards consultant for the film."
The film is the latest movie delayed in a line of movies that were seen as potential Oscar contenders. First the Weinstein Company announced earlier this week that it was delaying the Nicole Kidman starrer "Grace of Monaco." The announcement was also a major surprise because the company had already previewed the movie in May at the Cannes Film Festival and Harvey Weinstein said he was very excited about it.
Sony Pictures Classics also delayed the highly anticipated film "Foxcatcher," which was seen as a strong contender especially for Steve Carell in the Best Actor category. The film was slated to open the AFI Fest but the studio announced it was not ready.
Another title that was rumored to be delayed was James Gray's "The Immigrant." That film was once seen as the perfect movie to get Marion Cotillard her second Oscar nomination. However, TWC has failed to announce a release date and even skipped the Toronto, Venice and Telluride Film Festivals. However, the film later played at the New York Film Festival.
Paramount also delayed "The Wolf of Wall Street," but that film will be released on Christmas day.
Starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman and Jean Dujardin, "The Monuments Men" tells the story of a World War II platoon tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return the pieces to their rightful owners.
With Clooney's film delayed until 2014, Sony/Columbia will count on "American Hustle" as its only awards film this Oscar season.
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