BrightBurn will open opposite Disney and Guy Ritchie's live-action Aladdin, as well as Warner Bros.' video game adaptation MineCraft and Fox's Stuber, toplined by Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista.

BrightBurn has been shrouded in mystery and was set for a panel at San Diego Comic-Con in July, but that appearance was canceled after news broke that Disney had fired Gunn as director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 over old, offensive tweets. The film counts Elizabeth Banks among the cast. Gunn's brother Brian Gunn and cousin Mark Gunn wrote the script, with The Hive filmmaker David Yarovesky directing.

It's not an entirely a surprise that Sony moved the project, as no marketing materials have been released, while the new release date shows the studio has confidence in the movie. Since he departed Guardians 3, Gunn has remained behind the scenes and not granted any interviews. The move gives him more time before doing press, should he choose to do publicity to promote the film.

In a twinned move, Sony announced it will now open the horror film The Possession of Hannah Grace on Nov. 30 of this year and set an April 26, 2019, release date for The Intruder, a thriller from filmmaker Deon Taylor. The studio also said it is moving back Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly's Holmes & Watson back by a few days to Dec. 25 of this year.