The upcoming WW2 film Valkyrie, starring Hollywood major player Tom Cruise, has reportedly been plagued with problems - with the release date being held back until 2009.
The film, which details the 1944 assassination plot against Adolf Hitler, has been dogged by several postponements in production for a range of reasons.
Early test screenings for the film have been lukewarm, with gopher audiences commenting that Cruises attempt at a German accent was not up to scratch.
Film of several scenes has also been damaged in labs, requiring costly re-shoots.
“We were originally expecting the film to be released in June,” a senior executive of one of Britain’s leading cinema chains said.
“I know there have been all sorts of problems with this production and we will not be screening it at all this year.”
The film has the potential to be doubly explosive for Cruise, who is not only acting as German officer Claus von Stauffenberg, but is also involved in the production of the film through his minority stake in United Artists, the studio making the film.
United Artists, recently re-launched as a major studio in 2006, released Lions for Lambs, an Iraq War film starring Cruise, Meryl Streep and Robert Redford, which was a critical and commercial flop.