Studios attempting to shoot massive blockbuster movies during the pandemic are facing risks of production pausing for days, weeks, or even months at a time due to safety protocols in the age of COVID. Many might assume that once a film wraps, delays and studio headaches are over, but when it comes to Dwayne Johnson‘s “Black Adam,” featuring the mega-star as the DC Comics anti-hero, the post-production process has another string of hiccups to navigate.
A big one is the growing amount of complicated VFX shots and only so many companies exist to complete them in a timely manner. The Wrap recently spoke with Seven Bucks Productions‘ Hiram Garcia, who is producing the superhero flick, and details exactly why “Black Adam” was bumped from a prime summer spot on July 29 to October 21.
Garcia paints a picture of an entire backlog of work across the visual effects industry. As large productions have ramped back up, it means VFX houses are now “swamped,” trying to complete elaborate digital effects shots on time.
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“I think we’re just in a world right now where there was a huge and understandable freeze-up when the pandemic hit and a lot of productions were put on hold,” the producer explained. “Now that the industry has really roared back, the pipeline for VFX is so jammed. Obviously, all these superhero movies just require so much VFX, and we’re just in a situation where the majority of the VFX houses are just completely swamped with work.”
Garcia alludes to more delays that could be coming as projects pile up, “I think that’s why you saw seismic shifts across the board, and you continue to see those giant properties just moving further down the line. And it’s just a matter of the vendors being able to accommodate the amount of VFX they have to do, the shots that have to be done.”
Actors assembled by director Jaume Collet-Serra (“Jungle Cruise“) to play Justice Society of America, another DC superhero team, include Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher, Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone, and Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate. The rest of the cast consists of Sarah Shahi, Marwan Kenzari, James Cusati-Moyer, and Bodhi Sabongui.
Could we see more big Hollywood movies face further delays because of backlogs at VFX houses? We’ll have to wait and see, but the chances are good since studios are only increasing production volume.