With The Marvels' streaming release on Disney+, it continues a frustrating streak for fans.
Opening in theaters on November 10, The Marvels ended with the worst box office performance in MCU history, putting into question the future of Marvel films in theaters and validating many "superhero fatigue" conversations.
With the underwhelming box office effort, many curious fans who stayed at home may be curious why it's taking so long for it to premiere on Disney+.
The Marvels Continues Frustrating Disney+ Trend
The Marvels officially began streaming on Disney+ on Wednesday, February 7, continuing what could be viewed as an annoying trend.
The Marvels will begin streaming 89 days after its debut in theaters on November 10. This ties the film with Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 for the record of the longest theatrical-to-streaming release window for a Marvel Studios movie.
With Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as an outlier, it's clear to see the upward trajectory of Marvel's theater-to-streaming windows:
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings - 70 days
- Eternals - 68 days
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness - 47 days
- Thor: Love and Thunder - 62 days
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - 82 days
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania - 89 days
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 - 89 days
It's now safe to say that box office performance is not a metric that Disney and Marvel Studios are looking at to determine when a film begins streaming.
An argument could be made that The Marvels could've benefitted from an earlier streaming release date, but the roughly 90-day theatrical-to-streaming release window is set in stone until proven otherwise.
[ The Marvels Hit a Disastrous Box Office Milestone for the MCU ]
Why Marvel is Waiting Longer to Begin Streaming
For Marvel Studios and Disney, their initial streaming plans were altered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to Black Widow being released onto the streamer day-and-date in theaters.
Over the past three years, it has been nothing but one big experiment to see what does and does not work. Disney and Marvel aren't alone as companies like Universal, Warner Bros., and Paramount have all tested new release strategies.
However, one thing has become clear, with COVID-19 theater concerns nullified, Disney is extending the time its blockbuster films spend in cinemas.
Fans should expect Deadpool 3 to begin streaming on Disney+ 89 or 90 days following its release unless it has a box office run like Top Gun: Maverick, Barbie, or Oppenheimer.
Despite Marvel Studios' latest release schedule experiments with What If...? Season 2 and Echo, a clear plan has been displayed for its theatrical films.
The Marvels is now streaming on Disney+.
Read more about The Marvels (Spoilers)
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