Release of Wachowskis’ Epic Space Fantasy ‘Jupiter Ascending’ Suddenly Bumped from July to February

The Wachowski Siblings' Jupiter Ascending, starring Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis, was supposed to hit theaters on July 18, right in the heart of the summer blockbuster season. Today, however, just six weeks before the release, Warner Brothers announced that the film has been pushed back to February 6, 2015.

According to "insiders" who talked to The Hollywood Reporter, the $150 million epic sci-fi space fantasy needed more special effects work. And that might be true, seeing as how this looks like a pretty typical (i.e., explody) Wachowskis flick. However, it seems pretty likely that other factors are playing into the move as well. The film has not been generating a lot of buzz heading into the home stretch, and that could be problematic considering the audience is being asked to accept Channing Tatum as a space elf who in eyeliner.

The sudden move doesn't necessarily mean WB is writing the whole thing off, though. Getting a February release used to be the Hollywood equivalent of being banished to Siberia. However, Lego Movie came out in February, and that grossed over $450 million. Moreover, there are plenty of examples of commercially successful films that got bumped at the last minute—like G.I. Joe: Retaliation and World War Z. So there's hope yet for Jupiter Ascending.

If you're wondering what the hell the movie is about, though, I'm not even going to try to summarize it, because I'm fairly sure I'll get it wrong. Instead, just watch the trailers and put it together for yourself.