KUALA LUMPUR: The highly-anticipated Mechamato movie and series by local animation studio Monsta, set for a release later this year, has been postponed due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
The studio, which is responsible for the popular BoBoiBoy animated series and movies, announced recently that it had pushed back the release dates for the new works to sometime next year.
Although Monsta has yet to reveal any information about the newly-announced film, the news of a feature-length production has created lots of buzz with animation fans expressing their surprise that the company is planning to release a movie first, followed by the series.
In April, Monsta released a 3-minute "first-look" video for the Mechamato series, which has so far garnered over 6.5 million views in total across Monsta's online platforms.
In a recent Facebook post, Monsta CEO Nizam Abd Razak wrote: "We have some sad news for our fans. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Monsta has no choice but to delay the release of Mechamato this year. Unfortunately, market uncertainty and WFH (Working From Home) has affected our productivity and planning."
He added: "Actually, our original plan was to release the Mechamato Movie in late 2020, followed by the Mechamato Series. However, with so much uncertainty in the air right now, we have decided to push the Mechamato Movie release forward to 2021."
Mechamato follows the adventures of a young boy named Amato who inadvertently becomes the master of MechaBot, a Power Sphera with the power to mechanise any object.
Together, they become the titular armoured hero, Mechamato. Amato first made his appearance as an adult in a post-credits scene at the end of BoBoiBoy Movie 2, where he was revealed to be BoBoiBoy's father.
Meanwhile, fans of the BoBoiBoy franchise will be happy to know that the studio is working on a new BoBoiBoy project.
Nizam had previously talked a little about it on his social media and cryptically referred to it as "B.I.G.".
He stressed that it was not a reference to the BoBoiBoy Galaxy Season 2 comic series but something entirely new.
Whatever it turns out to be, Monsta is hoping that fans will continue to support its efforts.
A recent statement from the company read: "Even as the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic continues to impact our lives, Monsta hopes that fans in Malaysia and around the world will still keep on supporting the studio's efforts to produce high-quality and family-friendly entertainment for all."