Paramount’s Clifford the Big Red Dog will not receive a gala premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
Entertainment One, which was set to release the movie in Canada on Sept. 17, day-and-date with Paramount’s U.S. release, said the theatrical release had now been delayed. “Due to this change, the film will no longer be able to attend this year’s Toronto International Film Festival,” eOne said in a statement.
The move by eOne came a week after Paramount pulled its planned September theatrical release for Clifford the Big Red Dog amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and a surge in cases caused by the delta variant.
On July 20, TIFF organizers added the big-screen adaptation of Norman Bridwell’s beloved children’s book series about a 25-foot-tall red dog and his owner, a child named Emily Elizabeth, to the fest’s Sept. 9 to 18 schedule, with a booking into Roy Thomson Hall for a gala premiere.
The film stars Darby Camp as Emily Elizabeth, as well as Jack Whitehall, John Cleese and Tony Hale. A popular animated Clifford series has been a fixture on PBS since 2000.
Hollywood studios had hoped the box office recovery would be fully underway by fall. However, moviegoing is far from hitting pre-pandemic levels, while consumer confidence among families is of particular concern.
