Same issue here, with one difference that might help isolate the cause: this is my FIRST-EVER release for the project. It has never been published, and it has never used or removed brand assets (Star Wars, Squid Game, etc.). So the brand-switching theory does not explain my case. Creator Portal shows a publishing error, the approval email arrives right after, and the island never goes live — so no island code has been issued. Filed a separate report with full details here:
@Flak — adding a non-update, non-brand data point in case it helps.