Trolls World Tour reportedly earned $50 million in its VOD opening. In a perfect world, Trolls World Tour would've rolled out in theaters last weekend as originally planned. However, the global coronavirus pandemic has shuttered movie theaters all over and sent major releases to either later in the year or to 2021. Universal made the unprecedented decision to forgo a traditional theatrical run for Trolls World Tour, instead making it available on-demand for those stuck at home self-quarantining. It's one of the few films to do so, as only a handful of others have followed suit in some form. Disney will put Artemis Fowl on Disney+, Paramount's The Lovebirds has been bought by Netflix, and My Spy is headed to Amazon.

Of course, the main difference between those films and Trolls World Tour is that the latter costs $20 on-demand. The first Trolls was a decent hit back in 2016, scoring an opening weekend of $46.5 million before singing its way to $347 million worldwide. Because of that, Trolls World Tour was never expected to be a major box office hit, which is one of the reasons it was sent to on-demand instead of waiting for another release date. Trolls World Tour brings back Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake as Poppy and Branch as they try to unite other Troll tribes against the growing threat of Queen Barb (Rachel Bloom), a hard-rock Troll who wants to destroy all kinds of music.

Related: Why Trolls World Tour Is 2020's Most Important Movie Release

Deadline reports that industry insiders believe Trolls World Tour managed to rake in $50 million through VOD on its opening weekend. While this isn't quite an official number from Universal itself, it does fit with the studio's previous statement that Trolls World Tour had the biggest opening weekend ever for a digital release. Based on these tentative numbers, it certainly seems like Universal's risky move might have paid off.

Rachel Bloom as Queen Barb in Trolls World Tour

There have been some fears among theater owners that more studios could adopt the practice of sending movies to on-demand without a theatrical run, but it should be stated that Trolls World Tour is really a special case. Universal also pushed F9, which stood a good chance of being one of 2020's biggest earners, all the way to 2021 to ensure it would get a proper run in theaters. Trolls World Tour's success likely doesn't mean things will change; it just means Universal managed to find some good in a terrible situation.

Of course, this doesn't speak to Trolls World Tour's long-term prospects. Things could change in the days going forward, but right now, it represents a form of entertainment for families cooped up inside in need of something new. Movie theaters aren't expected to open until at least July, which means most people are relying on streaming and on-demand. Universal might not reveal any more concrete numbers, but the narrative that's been spun so far suggests that Trolls World Tour is doing okay.

More: Every Song On The Trolls World Tour Soundtrack

Source: Deadline