Two buzzed about films, The Girl on the Train and Ghost in the Shell, have been dropped from Disney’s release slate as of today. The former stars Emily Blunt and was set to open in theaters on October 7th, while the latter placed Scarlett Johansson in the lead and was scheduled for March 31, 2017. If you haven’t been keeping up with the business side of the entertainment industry, this might seem odd. (Don’t worry, I had a triple-take before my reality check-in). But, this action isn’t wholly shocking when you consider the latest regarding DreamWorks.

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In December, Amblin Partners -- a new film, TV, and digital content creation company -- was announced as part of Universal Pictures and would use the labels of Amblin, DreamWorks, and Participant Media to develop and produce films. DreamWorks films, therefore, will no longer be distributed by Disney, so it makes sense for Disney to drop The Girl on the Train and Ghost in the Shell from its roster. According to a report from Deadline, Universal will now handle the marketing and distribution of Amblin Partners beginning with The Girl on the Train.

Does this announcement mean bad things for these films? Not on its own, no. The Girl on the Train will more than likely still get a release in the fall. Given its source material (the best-selling book by Paula Hawkins) and its dynamite cast (Blunt, Justin Theroux, Rebecca Ferguson, Luke Evans, Edgar Ramirez), oh, and the fact that it’s already been filmed, there’s no way this one is going away.


As for Ghost in the Shell, which is also produced by DreamWorks, Johansson told our own Steve Weintraub during the Avengers: Age of Ultron press day that the film adapted from the manga/anime property will begin filming early this year. So, also keep your eyes peeled for a new release date coming soon.