The Walt Disney Company is not planning any more Premier Access windows on Disney+ this year, committing to releasing the rest of their film slate to theaters before streaming.
(Disney/Marvel/20th Century)
What’s Happening:
- According to Deadline, Kareem Daniel, Chairman, Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution, confirmed today that the rest of the studio’s film slate will have an exclusive theatrical release window prior to debuting on streaming.
- This means that the following films will only be available in theaters for at least 30-days before they can be enjoyed in home:
- The Last Duel – October 15th
- Ron’s Gone Wrong – October 22nd
- Eternals – November 5th
- Encanto – November 24th
- West Side Story – December 10th
- The King’s Man – December 22nd
- This news comes in the wake of the box office success of Marvel Studios’ Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which has been credited with reinvigorating the box office during its successful Labor Day weekend debut.
- In spite of much criticism for offering films like Black Widow and Jungle Cruise through Premier Access alongside a theatrical release, both films currently rank in the top 3 highest grossing domestic films of the year, with Shang-Chi on track to possibly claim the top spot from Black Widow.
What They’re Saying:
- Kareem Daniel, Chairman, Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution: “Following the tremendous box office success of our summer films which included five of the top eight domestic releases of the year, we are excited to update our theatrical plans for the remainder of 2021. As confidence in moviegoing continues to improve, we look forward to entertaining audiences in theaters, while maintaining the flexibility to give our Disney+ subscribers the gift of Encanto this holiday season.”