Barbie's Max streaming release window was officially announced by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav.
Greta Gerwig's neon pink existential comedy earned rave reviews since hitting theaters in late July.
The Margot Robbie-starring blockbuster is one of the biggest hits of the year, breaking all sorts of box office records with no sign of slowing down.
This continued success at the ticket window has made many wonder just how long this would delay the film's streaming release, as Warner Bros. (WB) looks to juice every drop from the Barbie orange.
Barbie's Streaming Release Revealed
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav confirmed when Greta Gerwig's Barbie film will come to the studio's streaming platform, Max.
During Warner's second-quarter earnings call, Zaslav told shareholders (via The Wrap) that the company is committed to a traditional theatrical window for the film, meaning Barbie would come to Max this fall.
He said that they "believe in the motion picture window" and when the film "goes on Max," they "think it’ll have a very good impact:"
“We really believe in the motion picture window. Let this movie go to the motion picture window, play it up, build up that brand, then have it go into PVOD. Take it through these windows of economics that have worked forever, and we think work extremely well. And then put it on Max. And when it goes on Max, we think it’ll have a very good impact and that’ll be in the fall.”
This comes as several studios reimagine their streaming strategies, lengthening their theatrical windows in an attempt to better recoup costs.
When Exactly To Expect Barbie on Max
While that "fall" descriptor is fairly nebulous, it is exciting for fans to at least get an update on when they can expect to take Barbie in at home.
Zaslav and co. have yet to make a specific release date public, but surely, that is coming down the line.
Warner Bros. (like many other Hollywood studios) has continued to rejigger its streaming outlook, pushing Max release dates for its biggest movies out further and further.
WB's biggest film to hit the streaming service so far this year is Shazam! Fury of the Gods. The super-powered sequel came to the newly-released Max platform 67 days after its theatrical release date.
Seeing as Barbie is a certified hit at the box office (something Shazam 2 was not), fans should expect to wait a bit longer for the movie to come to the streamer.
A likely release window for the Greta Gerwig blockbuster feels like somewhere between 90 and 100 days post-theatrical debut. That means the film's Max release could come sometime in late October.
At present, it seems Warner Bros. is going to push Barbie hard in this year's awards race. And those campaigns don't start until late fall.
Because of this, an end-of-October streaming debut would make a lot of sense as the studio tries to bring the movie back to the top of mind heading into the end of the year.
Barbie is playing in theaters worldwide now.
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