Wouldn't it be funny if this film was the biggest pile of poo ever? Might flop harder than a crusty cow pat after all this build up and shifting dates?
I really like Nolan films and hope that isn't the case, but it would amuse me so after all this!
It seems the studio has some confidence in it, and Nolan’s track record is as good as any director, better than most, but audiences are fickle. I am sure they are worried that if they release outside the US first, and the audience isn’t there, then it may be DOA in the US, and they need that big opening weekend.
This is a movie with a $200 million-plus budget, studios typically want to see a movie gross double to be considered successful, so let’s say $500 million to be sure. That means it has to do the same business as some of the biggest movies ever. This has to be an Avengers, Titanic, Star Wars kind of hit. Nolan has done this with his previous movies, but Dark Knight had the familiar Batman and Joker characters, and Inception had DiCaprio at his box office peak.
Just being a “good movie”, even one that critics love doesn’t guarantee anything - Blade Runner 2049 was a critical hit, but it barely brought in half it’s budget. I’m pretty confident Tenet will be good, but that doesn’t mean it will be a hit, and with the pandemic, anything can happen. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this held back even a full year.