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Credit: Inside the MagicWhen Netflix was introduced, many of us flocked to the streaming platform as it was the first of its kind. Now, with so many platforms available, all at an individual cost, it is no longer viable to be using all of the platforms that the internet has to offer. To combat this, it seems that Netflix is offering some of their content entirely for free.
Since its inception in 1998, Netflix has undergone a significant transformation from its initial DVD rental service to become one of the leading streaming platforms today. With its vast content library and competitive pricing, Netflix has solidified its position as one of the most popular streaming services, securing the number two spot in U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of best on-demand streaming services for 2024.
According to Netflix’s fourth-quarter 2023 earnings report, the company boasted approximately 260 million paid subscribers worldwide, marking an increase of approximately 13 million from the previous quarter.
Netflix subscription prices range from $6.99 to $22.99 per month, contingent on the chosen plan among three options: Standard With Ads, Standard, and Premium. Previously, the Basic plan, priced at $9.99, was a popular choice among users. However, Netflix has recently discontinued this option for new or returning members and is gradually phasing it out altogether.
At $22.99 Premium subscribers enjoy ad-free viewing with unlimited access and can stream content on up to four devices simultaneously. They also have the option to download content on six devices for offline viewing. Premium subscriptions offer enhanced viewing features such as Ultra HD and Netflix spatial audio, distinguishing them from other subscription options.
Additionally, Premium users can extend account access to two extra members outside their household for shared usage, each at an additional cost of $7.99 per month. If you are sharing your account with users not in your household, that extra charge will automatically be applied to your account.
While costs are rising for Netflix users, Netflix is still at the top of the leaderboard when it comes to the streaming wars. Behind Netflix is Amazon Prime Video, then Disney+ (Hulu, ESPN+). While Netflix does not necessarily have to worry about losing its stature as the reigning leader of streaming overall, the company has begun to lose leadership rankings in other countries outside of the United States, like the Middle East.
Now, it seems Netflix is widening its audience and pulling more appeal to the platform by making some of its content appear free.
One subscriber, Loud Toon 99 (@LoudToon99) shared a screenshot of 2023 film Nimona, which stars the voices of Chloë Grace Moretz as the eponymous shapeshifting character and Riz Ahmed as her boss and former knight Ballister, with Eugene Lee Yang, RuPaul, and Frances Conroy voicing supporting roles which is now on YouTube for free.
This is not a fake screenshot.
Netflix really just put up the entirety of Nimona on YouTube for free.
This is not a fake screenshot.
Netflix really just put up the entirety of Nimona on YouTube for free. pic.twitter.com/JzDidxH23E
— LoudToon99 #NewDeal4Animation #FreePalestine (@LoudToon99) February 19, 2024
We went and found the film as well, which you can watch below.
The description of the video states, “When a knight in a futuristic medieval world is framed for a crime he didn’t commit, the only one who can help him prove his innocence is Nimona — a mischievous teen who happens to be a shapeshifting creature he’s sworn to destroy.” Nimona is nominated for the Academy Award ® for Best Animated Feature Film”
Then Netflix goes on to promote the platform, guiding viewers to Netflix, “Watch on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81444554”.
It appears that Netflix’s plan to win over viewers is working, as many are shocked in a positive way that Netflix would drop an Oscar-nominated movie online for free, “Just casually dropping an Oscar-nominated movie on YouTube on a monday, absolutely based,” one viewer said in the comments section of the video.
The film’s release is also a major dig at Disney, who initially was meant to produce the film. After Disney acquired Fox in 2019, Nimona’s release date was delayed several times: from 2020, to 2021, and to 2022. Then, in February 2021, Disney effectively canceled Nimona when it shut down Blue Sky Studios, citing “current economic realities” brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is something that fans have certainly taken notice of, stating, “Disney rejecting and trying to delete Nimona from existing, only for that movie to be nominated for best-animated feature over Disney’s 100th-anniversary movie Wish is satisfying as hell”. Another wrote, “Disney shut down an entire studio just to make sure nobody saw this movie. And now everyone gets to see it for free. What a movie.”
As noted by Collider, “Stevenson and Nimona director Patrick Osbourne were “heartbroken” over the studio’s closing. An anonymous Blue Sky employee stated, “[That] is heartbreaking because we are not only losing our jobs, we’re losing our family, our workplace, we’re losing the closure of being able to send Nimona out into the world, where it could change kids’ lives.” Nimona was reportedly 75% complete before the cancelation and would have been the first feature-length Disney movie to openly feature a same-sex love story.”
Overall, the comment section of the video is getting praise and also getting the word out of the Oscar-nominated film just before Oscar season, “W for Netflix for saving this masterpiece, distributing it really well, and uploading it here just for everyone to see. Also, I’m glad that this movie is now an Oscar-nominated film and a two-time Annie award winner. Truly, a well-deserved recognition.. 👏,” said another viewer.
Based on the science fantasy graphic novel by American cartoonist ND Stevenson of the same name, Nimona follows the title character, a shapeshifter who joins the disgraced knight Ballister Blackheart in his plans to destroy the over-controlling Institute. Blackheart’s intent to operate under his code of ethics contrasts him with the impulsive Nimona.
What do you think about Netflix’s subtle yet clear dig at Disney?