After months of speculation over how Disney intended to release its delayed Black Widow, the company's CEO, Bob Chapek, has confirmed the plan is to stick to the re-re-rescheduled May 7 launch. Speaking to Deadline, Chapek revealed that the steady reopening of cinemas worldwide should be in full swing by May, and Black Widow will be heading to the big screen.

"As we've said, we believe it’s important to put the consumer in charge and let them decide how they want to enjoy our films, particularly as we navigate through the [COVID-19] pandemic. We are really excited about the full slate of films we have in store. Next up is Black Widow, currently sent for release in theatres on May 7."

Naturally, the "put the consumer in charge" does kind of suggest that premium access (paid for) on Disney+ could also be a possibility. Does that mean that Chapek hasn't ruled out a similar release method as Warner Bros with their 30-day access on HBO Max? That is mostly going to depend on how the next few months pan out as vaccines are rolled out and cinemas slowly reopen with reduced capacity. This week saw cinemas in New York reopened after being closed for an entire year, so there is every reason to be optimistic that we will get some kind of summer movie season this year. The last twelve months have seen audiences viewing habits changes drastically and has accelerated streaming and on-demand platforms. Disney+ recently passed 100 million subscribers since its launch in late 2019,  with massive hits like The Mandalorian, WandaVision, the forthcoming Falcon & The Winter Soldier series, and all the Marvel and Star Wars TV shows you could ever hope for, Disney+ is only going to get bigger.

Starring Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, William Hurt, Ray Winstone, and Rachel Weisz, Black Widow will arrive in cinemas on May 7.