Corrie, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks suspend filming

All soaps have been stopped amid the Coronavirus

Author: Alex RossPublished 23rd Mar 2020

After BBC soap EastEnders made the decision to suspend filming and reduce the number of episodes last week, Coronation Street, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks have also followed, in an attempt to stop the spread of Coronavirus.

As well as removing both Lorraine and Loose Women from this week's schedule, ITV bosses released a statement regarding both Emmerdale and Coronation Street.

The statement reads, "ITV has sadly taken the decision to suspend production of the soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale with effect from Monday 23 March.

"We’ve been doing our best to carry on filming, whilst adhering to the Government’s latest health guidelines, to ensure we’ve episodes of both soaps airing on ITV until at least the early summer.

"However, the health and well-being of the production teams, actors, crew and their families is of paramount importance to us and we now feel that the time has come to stop filming. We’d like to thank our viewers for their support and hope they continue to enjoy both soaps in the coming months.“

In light of the decision, both soaps will now only air three times per week, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

It's the same story for Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks, who have also made the decision to stop filming.

Sharing a photo of the iconic set on Instagram, bosses told fans, 'Dear Hollyoaks viewers. It is with a heavy heart that we have made the decision to pause filming of Hollyoaks. From Monday 30th March, we will be reducing the number of our weekly new episodes from five down to three, which will air Monday to Wednesday.'

Although episodes will only air Monday-Wednesday, fans will still get to view classic Hollyoaks episodes on Thursday and Friday, with a brand new series called 'Hollyoaks Favourites'.

Bosses revealed, 'To make sure we stay on air every week night, fans can look forward to extra special episodes every Thursday and Friday on E4, as we begin a brand new series of 'Hollyoaks Favourites'. Introduced by Kieron Richardson and Jorgie Porter, this series will give viewers a chance to revisit some of our biggest episodes, from weddings, bust-ups, heartbreaks and some of our biggest and best stunts.

'We will start the series with Mercedes' fourth wedding, to Dr Browning.'

The statement then concluded, 'Soaps are an important part of people's lives and we have 25 years of Hollyoaks Favourites to revisit over coming weeks, celebrating the history of the show that you love.

'We will remain as present as ever on our social platforms so please keep in touch with us here, stay safe and take care of yourselves. Thank you for your ongoing support.

'Love from everyone at Hollyoaks. x #StaySafe #TakeCare #Hollyoaks' (sic)

Check out all of the films that have been postponed due to Coronavirus:

No Time To Die

No Time To Die was supposed to be released on 10th April 2020, and was the first major film release to be pushed back due to the Coronavirus. Releasing a statement on Twitter, film bosses explained, 'MGM, Universal and Bond producers, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, announced today that after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace, the release of NO TIME TO DIE will be postponed until November 2020.'


However in October, it was later revealed the film would be put back until April 2021. In January 2021, the film was confirmed to have a release date of October 2021, and was later released in cinemas in the UK on 30th September 2021.

A Quiet Place: Part II

Director John Krasinski confirmed on 12th March 2020 that the sequel to his critically acclaimed film would not be released on 19th March 2020 as planned. He wrote on his social media pages, 'To all our A Quiet Place fans, one of the things I'm most proud of is that people have said our movie is one you have to see all together. Well due to the ever-changing circumstances of what's going on in the world around us, now is clearly not the right time to do that.


'As insanely excited as we are for all of you to see this movie... I'm gonna wait to release the film til we CAN all see it together! So here's to our group movie date! See you soon! #AQuiet Place Part 2...Take 2. JK.'


The sequel was eventually released on 3rd June 2021.

F9

The ninth film in the Fast & Furious franchise was pushed back from its original release date of May 2020 to 2nd April 2021, and then 28th May 2021. The official release date was later 25th June 2021.


At the time, a statement from film bosses read, 'To our family of Fast fans everywhere, we feel all the love and the anticipation you have for the next chapter in our saga. That's why it's especially tough to let you know that we have to move the release date of the film. It's become clear that it won't be possible for all of our fans around the world to see the film this May.'

Black Widow

The Scarlett Johansson-led Marvel film was due to be released in May 2020, but Disney made the decision to put it back to 7th May 2021. It was then released on 9th July 2021 in cinemas and on Disney+ with a premium fee.

Antlers

Produced by Guillermo Del Toro, the horror film starring Keri Russell and Jesse Plemons was set to be released on 17th April, however had to be given a new release date of 29th October 2021.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife

Sony announced on 30th March that they had decided to push back the release of their Ghostbusters sequel starring Paul Rudd and Stranger Things' Finn Wolfhard from 10th July 2020 to 5th March 2021, and later moved it again to 11th November 2021. The film also featured original cast members Bill Murray, Sigourney Weaver and Dan Aykroyd.

Morbius

Morbius, starring Jared Leto, is a film about a biochemist who becomes a vampire. It's a spin-off to Tom Hardy's Venom film and also has connections with Tom Holland's Spider-Man franchise. It was set to be released on 31st July 2020, but was pushed back to 19th March 2021, later being pushed again to 28th January 2022.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage

Speaking of Venom... The sequel to the 2018 hit would have been released on 2nd October 2020, but didn't actually see the light of day until 24th September 2021.

The Batman

Robert Pattinson's iteration of Batman was released on 4th March 2022, having originally been scheduled for 25th June 2021.

The King's Man

A prequel to Kingsman and its sequel, The King's Man was originally scheduled for release on 18th September 2020 but instead saw its cinematic release on 22nd December 2021.

West Side Story

Steven Spielberg's remake of the classic musical was originally slated for 18th December 2020, but wasn't actually released in cinemas until 24th September 2021.

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