Audiences will be able to see one of their favorite Disney films on the big screen for Disney+ Day, but they won't know which film when they buy their ticket. Disney+ Day is set for November 12, 2021, and will celebrate two years since the streaming service launched. This year, audiences and Disney are eagerly awaiting Disney+ Day for high-profile announcements and sneak peeks at upcoming programs coming to the streaming service to be enjoyed in the comfort of their homes.
Much emphasis has been put on what will be available to watch at home, as both Jungle Cruise and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will premiere on the streaming service that day, as well the Disney+ original film, Home Sweet Home Alone. There will also be specials highlighting the future MCU series and the upcoming Boba Fett series, as well as the news that various MCU films will be available to stream in the IMAX format. Yet, while Disney+ is a streaming service intended to be viewed at home, the company is making the celebration a global event and available even at the place where many audiences saw some of their favorites, the cinema.
Fandango has listed four special screenings for Disney films on Disney+ Day, November 12, 2021. The showings will take place across 200 AMC Theaters in the United States. The four films are currently a secret, where audiences won't know what the movie is until it starts. The four screenings are broken up into categories: Disney, Walt Disney Animation, Pixar Animation, and Star Wars. The screening information from Fandango is featured below, with tickets available for purchase now.
Long before Disney entered the streaming era, and even before home video, Disney used to rerelease their classic animated films in theaters every several years for a new generation of kids and parents to enjoy together. However, as the studio pivoted to home video, theatrical re-releases became less normal, except for special 3D re-releases in the early 2010s. Disney often kept their films out of circulation in a practice called The Disney Vault, which was implemented on the films of 20th Century Fox which many, including Edgar Wright, criticized them for. Now, with so many of the films being available on Disney+, giving audiences the chance to see their favorite Disney films on the big screen, it can be a special treat for the family.
While the four movies remain a secret, the runtimes may give a clue to their identity. Both Toy Story 2 and Monsters Inc. have a runtime of 1 hour and 32 minutes, so both films likely could be the Pixar film screening, with Monsters Inc. being the most likely as the film recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. The Star Wars screening is both PG-13 and has a runtime of 2 hours and 13 minutes with that perfectly matching Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, likely to generate excitement for the upcoming Star Wars: Andor spin-off series coming to Disney+. The Disney screening has two different times listed across different services, with the Fandango listing 1 hour and 54 minutes while on the AMC site, it lists 1 hour and 48 minutes, which is the exact runtime of Tim Burton's 2010 Alice in Wonderland remake. However, these all remain guesses with no official confirmation until the movie is playing on Disney+ Day.
Source: Fandango