Walt Disney Studios announced they will be releasing Artemis Fowl straight to Disney Plus.
In a press release, Disney announced, “The Walt Disney Studios announced today that it will debut its new live-action feature film “Artemis Fowl” exclusively on Disney+.”
Disney did not provide a release date for the film to arrive on Disney Plus. They simply stated, “The release date will be announced soon.” The film was previously scheduled to release in theaters on May 29, 2020. However, before that it had an August 9, 2019 release date.
President, Content & Marketing for Disney Plus Ricky Strauss explained why they were releasing the film straight to Disney Plus, “With audiences largely unable to attend theatres in the current environment, we are thrilled to offer the premiere of ‘Artemis Fowl’ on Disney+.”
He added, “Director Kenneth Branagh and his spectacular cast take viewers right into the vibrant, fantasy world of the beloved book, which fans have been waiting to see brought to life onscreen for years. It’s great family entertainment that is the perfect addition to Disney+’s summer lineup.”
Along with the announcement that the film would arrive exclusively to Disney Plus they included an official description:
“In this fantastical, spellbinding adventure, 12-year-old genius Artemis Fowl (Shaw), a descendant of a long line of criminal masterminds, embarks on a journey to find his father (Farrell), who has mysteriously disappeared. With the help of his loyal protector Butler (Anozie), Artemis sets out to find him, and in doing so uncovers an ancient, underground civilization—the amazingly advanced world of fairies. Deducing that his father’s disappearance is somehow connected to the secretive, reclusive fairy world, cunning Artemis concocts a dangerous plan—so dangerous that he ultimately finds himself in a perilous war of wits with the all-powerful fairies.”
Related: Rumor: Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow Could Be Released “Straight To Streaming”
This announcement comes after a rumor indicated that Disney was looking at releasing Black Widow and Mulan to VOD and streaming as well.
YouTuber Grace Randolph stated on Twitter, “So I did some digging with all the chatter today, and apparently Disney IS considering releasing not just Black Widow but also Mulan straight to streaming.”
She added, “Price points, purchase vs rental, when to Disney Plus all still up in the air. Developing…”
So I did some digging with all the chatter today, and apparently #Disney IS considering releasing not just #BlackWidow but also #Mulan straight to streaming.
Price points, purchase vs rental, when to #DisneyPlus all still up in the air.
Developing… pic.twitter.com/cusULkYmQW
— Grace Randolph (@GraceRandolph) March 28, 2020
On YouTube she would elaborate why she believes Disney would release the film straight to VOD or streaming.
She stated:
“I’d like to stress this is something Disney is considering and they will likely make a decision in the next month or so. If Mulan, luckily being decided first, and if that works out Black Widow following suit, and probably a lot of other movies from other studios too.”
It looks like Disney is going to test the waters with Artemis Fowl first.
She also explained Disney would make this move because of their current financial situation, “After the Fox acquisition, they are vulnerable financially, they are still are carrying debt. They just raised a bunch of revenue through debt. And so Disney, to be honest with you, is trying to stave off a potential takeover bid.”
She added, “Disney also has theme park employees that they are right, because it would just be PR nightmare if they didn’t, they are currently paying them even though they aren’t working. So all of these employees need to get some kind of money even if it’s just a fraction of their usual salary. So to have money coming in from this kind of digital release would allow the studios to be able to at least pay something on the dollar; some fraction.”
What do you make of this decision by Disney to exclusively release Artemis Fowl to Disney Plus?