Disney Plus Premier Access: Which of these hot new releases will charge you?
Disney is going to get your money one way or another. The studio will see you at the movie theater for its hottest new releases . . . or it will let you chill at home and watch said releases from your couch – as long as you pay the appropriate fee, of course. Through the magic of Disney Plus Premier Access, Mickey is making sure you don’t miss out on his new movies while he doesn’t miss out on getting his cut.
The trial run for Disney Plus Premier Access was the release of the Mulan remake last September. Disney’s streaming service, which costs &7.99 a month, offered subscribers the chance to watch the new film from the comfort of their home. However, as a Disney Plus Premier Access title, Mulan would cost you an extra $30. Alternatively, you could wait and watch it at no extra charge in December . . . but who wants to wait?
Most recently, Disney Plus gave Raya and the Last Dragon the Premier Access treatment as well. On March 5th, the animated adventure opened in theaters and on the streaming platform simultaneously – again, for an extra $30. The move must have been successful enough, because Disney has announced a similar strategy for several very anticipated films. Now the question is: how many will you watch at home?
Cruella
The classic villain from Disney’s One Hundred and One Dalmatians is getting her very own live-action origin story a la 2014’s Maleficent. Unlike that Sleeping Beauty prequel, however, we don’t expect Cruella to humanize Cruella de Vil and turn her into a sympathetic character. Come on, the woman skins dogs in the name of fashion. That’s pretty irredeemable.
You can watch Emma Stone ham it up as the live-action Cruella de Vil on Memorial Day. The film will open in theaters & Disney Plus Premier Access.
Black Widow
We’ve been waiting forever for the Black Widow prequel to be released. Last year, back when we were waist-deep in the throes of COVID-19 and the debut of Natasha Romanoff’s first-ever solo movie kept getting delayed, many fans predicted the film would open on Disney Plus. All these months later, those predictions have been proven half-right. Black Widow will be a Disney Plus Premier Access title.
We’ll get to see Scarlett Johansson play our favorite Marvel spy one last time – and pass the Black Widow torch to Florence Pugh – on July 9th. You can go see it in theaters, you can watch it at home, or you can do both, if you feel like splurging.
Jungle Cruise
Nope, not a movie about Tom Cruise battling the wilderness in the Amazon – although we’d watch that in a hot minute, Disney Plus Premier Access or not. But no, Jungle Cruise is the latest Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson vehicle, a fantasy adventure film that teams him up with (in his own words) “the female Indiana Jones” Emily Blunt.
The movie focuses on Johnson & Blunt’s search for the elusive Tree of Life – definitely an Indiana Jones adventure if we ever heard one, especially once you learn their opposition is a German expedition. The Rock plays a shrewd riverboat captain, Emily Blunt plays an eccentric scientist, and a little mouse tells us Jesse Plemons plays one of the villains. Exciting stuff.
Jungle Cruise is the latest Disney release to get “Premier-accessed”, a development that seems to fill a section of the industry with dread. Some people argue that by making their movies instantly available for streaming, Disney isn’t supporting movie theaters. On the other hand, Disney claims their priority is allowing families to watch their movies, even if they don’t feel ready to go back to theaters.
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How do you feel about the Disney Plus Premier Access options? Is $30 too steep a price to stream a new movie? Are you glad you can watch new films without having to go to a movie theater? Let us know in the comments!
