THE DIVERGENT SERIES: ASCENDANT Pushes Back Release Date

THE DIVERGENT SERIES: ASCENDANT changes to late spring release date.

In a surprise move, Lionsgate announced yesterday that it will be moving the final movie in The Divergent Series away from the coveted March weekend it has inhabited since the original film’s release. The Divergent Series: Ascendant will air a little closer to the summer than its predecessors.

Lionsgate did not comment on the reason for the change.

After a series of powerhouse releases from Disney, it’s possible that the change was made to avoid competition from the studio’s live-action Beauty and the Beast film starring Emma Watson, which hits theaters a week prior to Ascendant‘s original release date. Both movies are vying for the same demographic and Disney has some serious fandom and marketing power to contend with.

Instead, Ascendant will directly go up against the next-to-be-titled sequel to World War Z starring Brad Pitt, which has the same action-adventure genre but is geared toward older audiences. But even tougher than Beauty and the Beast or World War Z 2, the film will come out two weeks after Star Wars Episode VIII, taking on the biggest franchise in the galaxy.

This is the first time a Divergent film will not be released on the third Friday in March.

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The next film in the series, The Divergent Series: Allegiant, hits theaters on March 18, 2016.

By Molly

Molly is a proud Canadian who is currently attending university in Scotland. She loves to read, write, watch films, and talk about Sarah J. Maas books. If not snuggled up with a book, Molly can usually be found tapping at the dance studio, or writing yet another essay.