In the wake of the announcement of “Jungle Cruise” coming to Disney+ as a Premier Access title, Disney CEO Bob Chapek has announced that two other films on its slate – Marvel Studios’ “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” and 20th Century Studios’ “Free Guy” – will NOT be following suit.
As part of a second-quarter earnings call on Thursday, Chapek says both films will play exclusively in cinemas at launch – no plans for a ‘Premier Access’ release. He does, however, confirm that both titles will only play exclusively there for 45 days before transitioning to VOD and streaming.
“Free Guy” hits August 13th and “Shang-Chi” on September 3rd, both marking Disney’s first pure theatrical releases since 20th Century’s “New Mutants” back in August last year. Its next three films – “Cruella” (May 28), Marvel’s “Black Widow” (July 9) and “Jungle Cruise” (July 30) are all going to cinemas and Premier Access on Disney+ simultaneously.
The decision doesn’t mean ‘Premier Access’ is dead once we hit late Summer, Chapek saying Disney will continue to pursue its new hybrid release framework as needed and “flexibility is a key component of our distribution strategy.”
The news also comes as the amount of Disney+ subscribers seems to be slowing down after such a strong rollout over the past eighteen months. The company has announced they presently have 103.6 million subscribers – below the Wall Street consensus which expected 110 million subscribers at this point.
Source: THR
