There have been big announcements in the entertainment industry this week, particularly from Disney. We have known for quite some time that there was going to be a Disney based Netflix alternative but not many of the details had been released. However, there have been a Disney Plus update released more recently.
From the start, we will see a lot of big names on the new Disney streaming service; including the biggest names with Marvel, Pixar and Lucasfilms! Much like the Netflix counterpart, will have a full schedule of TV shows including 25 original shows to launch within the first year (listed below). This includes “High School Musical” and Jon Favreau’s Star Wars “The Mandalorian” along with many others. Much to the joy of many, it was announced that Disney will also have 30 full seasons of “The Simpsons” as well as other past TV shows. The total number of episodes from past TV shows will be around 7,500 on Disney Plus. This should ease some minds in regards to the recent Disney Fox merger. We will find out more within the next couple months as far as the extent of the library.
What about the movies?
From the get go, Disney Plus will have 500 films in their library. Including a majority of Marvel movies, all of the Star Wars franchise films and 18 Pixar films. The full library is unknown at this time but it is reported that it will house the entire Disney movie library. Including the movies that are currently in the vault. There may be added films from the Fox merger but this has not been announced at this point. There are a few film franchise that we would like to see added to Disney Plus.
So how much will this run me?
With the Disney Plus update, it was announced that the new streaming service will cost $6.99 per month which is a fairly low price point. It is a little cheaper if you sign up for a year, at which it drops to $69.99 for the year. The concern is that it would be similar to Hulu, where there is a low price point but is also ad driven. However, during the announcement, they relieved many that Disney plus will not have ads. There will be an option for offline viewing as well!
There are rumors that Disney plus may have some bundled packages with either Hulu or ESPN as Disney owns majority of shares in both streaming services. The prices may increase as the library increases but that is unknown. Another unknown is if this will have a family option or the number of streams that can be going at once. You can sign up on their website for updates.
When can I join?
Sign up date has not been announced at this time but we do know that Disney Plus will officially launch on November 12, 2019!
What original shows have been announced?
Live Action TV shows
At launch
- The Mandalorian – Star Wars based show from Jon Favreau
- High School Musical
Year one
- Diary of a Female President
- The Falcon and The Winter Soldier – starring Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan
Year two
- WandaVision – Based on Avengers starring Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany
- A Cassian Andor series – A Star Wars based movie
- Loki – based of Thor and will star Tom Hiddleston
Animated TV Series
At launch
- Forky Asks a Question – based on Toy Story 4
- SparkShorts – Pixar animation short films
Year one
- Monsters At Work – based on Monsters Inc” with Billy Crystal and John Goodman
- Lamp Life – The back story of Bo Peep
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars – new season of the animated show.
- Marvel’s What If….? – It will look at what would happen if things had played out differently in the MCU
Other shows
At Launch
- Encore! – reuniting a high school musical former cast mates
- Walt Disney Imagineering Documentary
- Marvel’s Hero Project – A look at how young heroes are making a positive change in their own communities
- The World According to Jeff Goldblum
Year one
- Be Our Chef – Cooking show that will look for the next Dish at Disney World – hosted by Angela Kinsey (The Office)
- Cinema Relics: Iconic Art of the Movies
- Into the Unknown: Making Frozen 2
- Magic of Animal Kingdom
- Marvel’s 616
- (Re)Connect – A show that is based on a family disconnecting from distractions and addressing their issues together
- Rogue Trip – A look at less visited areas with Bob Woodruff
- Shop Class – Student competition to design and develop new contraptions
Year two
- Earthkeepers – Focus is on Conservationist and the animals they are trying to protect
- Ink & Paint – Looks at the story of animation at Disney over the years
Original Films
At launch
- Lady & The Tramp – Live action retelling of the classic animated film
Year one
- Noelle – Story of santa
- The Phineas and Ferb movie
- Star Girl – based on the young adult novel
- Timmy Failure – based on the book by the same name
- Togo- Based on true story of a diphtheria outbreak in Alaska and the hundred mile journey
Future productions include
- Live-action Sword in the Stone
- 3 men and a Baby remake
- Father of the Bride remake
- Live-action Peter Pan
- Honey, I shrunk the Kids remake
- The Parent Trap
- High Fidelity
- The Muppets
- Mighty Ducks
How can I watch Disney Plus?
So far it has been announced that Disney plus will be available on Roku and Playstation 4, along with tablets, smartphones and Smart TVs. It is unknown when or if it will be coming to Xbox, Fire stick or Apple TV. It seems very likely they they will expand the platforms that Disney Plus is available.
Disney plus update gives a lot of support that it will have a great run with new programming and will bring out old classics. It should be a good value for the price point. We will see how this changes streaming services in the future.
What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below!