When Disney’s Encanto debuted in movie theaters over two months ago, not a lot of people were talking about the movie.
However, the movie is seeing a resurgence in popularity now and has become the star of many TikTok videos. And there’s a good reason why — streaming.
One of the industries hit hardest by the ongoing global health crisis is the movie theater industry — and during that time, we started seeing some Disney movies debuting on Disney+ at the same time as their theatrical releases (usually for an additional fee on top of the monthly subscription fee). Other movies debuted exclusively on Disney+.
In the case of Encanto, the film did get a theatrical release but became available quickly on Disney+ after, and it’s now one of the most popular movies on streaming and social media.
According to Bloomberg, Encanto is hugely popular right now thanks to its streaming debut. Not only is the movie’s soundtrack the No. 1 album in the U.S. this week on the Billboard 200, but Encanto was also the most-viewed title on Disney+ in the first two weeks after its December 24th streaming debut.
Bloomberg points out that family films, in particular, have struggled the most with theatrical releases during the pandemic, so this could be the trend — at least for now — that these movies will get more viewers through streaming. And this is possibly the reasoning behind Disney’s decision to release its next animated Pixar feature Turning Red exclusively on its streaming service.
At the moment, Disney+ has more than 118 million subscribers worldwide. And a large part of its audience is children, who tend to watch their favorite movies over and over, which is something the company encourages on social media. So Disney’s new strategy going forward — at least for now — could see more family movies debuting on Disney+.
We’ll continue to keep up with every Disney movie, so stay tuned for more news.
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What do you think of Encanto’s success on Disney+? Will it change how Disney releases family films? Let us know in the comments!
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I hope things will go back to normal soon. As a huge fan of some Disney movies, I love Disney+ and being able to watch my favorite titles whenever I want but cinema has a whole different feel, the experience, the smells, the great sound and of course the huge scene which is especially important with masterful and colorful animated films. I remember how bummed I was because I couldn’t go watch Encanto because of the vaccination rules and that movie was the reason I subscribed to Disney+.
With the economy also seeing people struggle, people used their money to pick one movie for the holidays and that movie was Spider-Man. I saw both in theaters but my wife and I have now watched Encanto 3 times at home. Also I hear people sing “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” in Target… yep! That song is catchy.