In one of the most unpredictable times in many of our lifetimes, the coronavirus has affected the film industry as theaters have closed across the country. To combat theater closures, NBCUniversal announced its popular movies from the Universal Pictures, including the upcoming film Trolls World Tour would be made available on-demand at the same time they hit those theaters that will remain open during the pandemic.
The new policy is quite groundbreaking as it breaks the mold as it abandons the traditional theatrical window as the film industry attempts to deal with these unique circumstances.
The films will be made available on a wide variety of on-demand services for a 48-hour rental period at a suggested retail price of $19.99 in the U.S. and the price equivalent in international markets.
In addition to DreamWorks Animation’s Trolls World Tour, set to open in theaters April 10 in North America, NBCUniversal will also make movies that are currently in theatrical release available on-demand starting as early as Friday. Universal’s The Hunt and The Invisible Man, as well as Focus Features’ Emma, will also be released.
The press release states, “Given the rapidly evolving and unprecedented changes to consumers’ daily lives during this difficult time, the company felt that now was the right time to provide this option in the home as well as in theaters. NBCUniversal will continue to evaluate the environment as conditions evolve and will determine the best distribution strategy in each market when the current unique situation changes. Universal Pictures has a broad and diverse range of movies, with 2020 being no exception. Rather than delaying these films or releasing them into a challenging distribution landscape, we wanted to provide an option for people to view these titles in the home that is both accessible and affordable,” said Shell in the same statement. “We hope and believe that people will still go to the movies in theaters where available, but we understand that for people in different areas of the world that is increasingly becoming less possible.”
