FIRST OFF . . .

Universal Pictures’ schedule for a wide national release of Sir Richard Attenborough’s anti-apartheid film “Cry Freedom” have “slowed down considerably,” distribution president William Soady said Wednesday. Soady said the film, which has drawn mixed reviews and has not done spectacular business at the box office, was originally scheduled to have opened in most major North American markets by Nov. 20. Now, however, the studio does not plan a wide release until well into next year, Soady said. Universal denied rumors in the entertainment industry that “Cry Freedom” was going to be pulled from its current bookings in selected theaters due to poor business.