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Credit: DisneyThe absolute fanfare for Encanto (2021) was much more than Disney could have ever planned on.
Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Encanto tells the tale of an extraordinary family, the Madrigals, who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia, in a magical house, in a charmed place called an Encanto. The magic of the Encanto has blessed every child in the family with a unique gift from super strength to the power to heal, except one, Mirabel (voice of Stephanie Beatriz). But when she discovers that the magic surrounding the Encanto is in danger, Mirabel decides that she, the only ordinary Madrigal, might just be her exceptional family’s last hope.
The movie saw its popular hit “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” hit the top of the charts for multiple weeks, becoming more popular than “Let It Go” from Frozen (2013) and was the first Disney song since “A Whole New World” in Aladdin (1992) to top the charts.
If that weren’t enough, Encanto topped the streaming charts in 2022, with more than 27 billion minutes viewed on Disney+ this year.
However, with Disney’s newest plan, we won’t see another viral trending film anytime soon.
Disney releases a new plan, meaning we won’t see another Encanto
Disney recently released its new plan for films and, to some surprise, the company is moving away from Disney+ releases and will instead move back fully into theatrical releases. In the past, films with theatrical releases have been placed on Disney+ around 1-2 months after their original release.
Though Disney saw some epic failures at the box office with two specific movies, Lightyear (2022) and Strange World (2022), the company likely knows it missed out on a major payday had Encanto been released in theaters. As a matter of fact, some insiders estimate that the animated film could have reached levels similar to that of the first Frozen (2013), which grossed more than $1.2 billion at the box office.
Not having Disney+ releases means that we’ll likely not see a streaming sensation similar to the trends that Encanto saw.
Instead, at least for the time being, Disney will move back to the more traditional route and attempt to make some major numbers at the box office before sharing a film to its streaming platform.
While some fans will not like the tactic of bringing a film to the movie theaters first, it’s clear that the financial incentives– especially after several movies proved that fans will still go to the movie theaters for a film they want to see– outweigh the costs.
What do you think of Disney’s new plan? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments!