Will AMC Theatres Ban Disney Movies?

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and various stay-at-home orders, AMC Theatres banned Universal movies from playing at AMC locations. The question now is, will AMC Theatres ban Disney movies from playing at AMC?

The answer is complicated.

Because movie theaters are closed due to the pandemic, Universal Pictures released Trolls World Tour straight to streaming platforms. The film’s digital release was highly successful with Universal Pictures bringing in almost $100 million. AMC Theatres banned Universal because NBC Universal CEO, Jeff Shell, stated that Universal’s expects to “release movies on both formats.”

AMC Theatres stated that their ban isn’t exclusive to Universal Pictures. AMC’s ban “also extends to any movie maker who unilaterally abandons current windowing practices absent good faith negotiations between us.”

The windowing practices that AMC is referring to is the practice of not allowing a film to be released on VOD, DVD, or Blu-Ray until after the film has left the theater for 90 days. This means the studio has to shelf the movie for 90 days, which could cost studios millions in profits.

Universal never said it was abandoning window practices. Shell just said that they would release movies on both formats.

So how does this pertain to Disney?

Disney CEO Bob Chapek stated the following on a recent company’s earnings call:

“We very much believe in the value of the theatrical experience. But we also believe that either because of changing and evolving consumer dynamics or because of certain situations like COVID, we may have to make some changes to that overall strategy. We’re going to evaluate each of our movies as a case-by-case situation, as we are doing during this coronavirus situation.”

Chapek’s remarks are similar to the comments of Universal Pictures. Based on AMC’s statement, if AMC holds Disney to the same standard as Universal. The theater chain would ban Disney.

Banning Disney could be a big mistake.

Disney is highly invested in the streaming market. Disney has its own streaming service Disney Plus. Disney Plus has just over 54 million paid subscribers globally. Disney could always premiere a majority of its films on Disney Plus, VOD, and DVD/Blu-Ray.

In addition to Disney Plus, Disney owns Hulu. Hulu has over 32 million subscribers.

To make things more interesting, movies released in 2020 only on streaming platforms will be eligible to be nominated or the 93^rd Oscars.

This would mean that Universal and Disney could forgo theatrical distribution and still make a profit while maintaining eligibility to win an Academy Award.

Movie theaters have been closed due to stay at home orders. It is unclear when theaters will open in the United States. If theaters do open, it is highly likely that theaters will have to practice social distancing. This would mean that theaters couldn’t operate at full capacity for the foreseeable future. Less capacity means limited profits. Limited profits would be a huge reason for major studios like Universal and Disney to forego theatrical releases for the near future.

It will be interesting to see how many moviegoers will visit theaters in the post-COVID-19 environment that will exist for the near future.

Leave a comment below to let us know what you think. Should AMC ban studios? Or should studios be allowed to release films straight to streaming without penalty?