Originally, Alita: Battle Angel was set to be released this summer. Then it was pushed back to December. Normally moving a movie in this manner would mean that there might be some issues that make the studio uncomfortable or they at least wanted more time to make changes before bringing it to audiences. It is to be noted that 20th Century Fox, the studio behind Alita: Battle Angel moved a number of their upcoming releases this year including The New Mutants, X-Men: Dark Phoenix, and Deadpool 2.
![Alita: Battle Angel | Teaser Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/aj8mN_7Apcw/hqdefault.jpg)
However, it might just be a move to avoid major competition with some absolute mega hits that are coming out this Summer including Avengers: Infinity War, Deadpool 2, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, and Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Now we might have some answers as to why Alita got moved back.
20th Century Fox showcased the film last weekend at CinemaCon and included not only a new trailer, but also two scenes from the film. Journalists who attended the screening shared their reactions.
New ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL trailer. It’s clear they are trying very, very hard to make this thing work but I remain super skeptical. It just looks goofy.
Now we’re gonna see two scenes from the movie.
— Scott Wampler™ (@ScottWamplerBMD) April 26, 2018
Two scenes: Alita waking up and looking at her robo-body in a mirror, and Alita fighting a big-ass robo-dude who had clawed metallic tentacles. Still not feeling it.
Not being funny: I just don’t like looking at Alita. Forget the uncanny valley, this is uncanny Marianas Trench.
— Scott Wampler™ (@ScottWamplerBMD) April 26, 2018
It has to be noted that the attempt to bring the famous manga by Yukito Kishiro to the big screen has been a problem for some time for famous director James Cameron. Years ago he secured the rights to the movie, but has since had a difficult time bringing it to the big screen. In fact, Cameron has been trying to bring the film to the big screen since the mid-1990s. It wasn’t until Robert Rodriguez came on board to direct did the movie start moving forward.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. Eric Vespe Senior Entertainment Writer for The Know at Rooster Teeth had a different take on the trailer.
Alita looks like a legit love letter for fans of anime. Over the top, well-choreographed action, not scared of going a bit silly. Still have no idea if the world on the whole is ready for this, but I’m already positive it’s going to have a very dedicated fanbase once it comes out
— Eric Vespe (@EricVespe) April 26, 2018
For fans of sci-fi/anime, this is good news. But does that mean this movie can translate into success with general audiences? We’ll have to wait until test audience scores come out before we know.
Battle Angel Alita was created by Yukito Kishiro. The manga is set in a post-apocalyptic future and follows Alita who is a cyborg found in a garbage pile and reassembled. Without memory, Alita sets out to become a bounty hunter with amazing martial arts skills.
Alita: Battle Angel comes to theaters on December 21st, 2018.