Loki isn't just the hot new Disney Plus show for audiences who can't get enough of Tom Hiddleston — it's also possibly the cause of a big change over at Disney Plus. At least that's what things look like, as the major success of its premiere has led to Disney shaking things up.
One week after the premiere of Loki episode 1, we've just found out that Disney will now put all of its new original shows out on Wednesdays. Yes, Fridays are out, and Wednesdays are in. This news comes from The Hollywood Reporter, which notes that the Monsters Inc. series Monsters at Work (moving to July 7, formerly July 2) and the live action Turner & Hooch series (now July 21, formerly July 16) are being moved.
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So, why did this happen? It seems as if Disney's following the success of the Loki series, which CEO Bob Chapek (via IGN) had "the most watched premiere [episode on Disney+ during its opening week." That said, Disney Plus (like most streaming services) did not disclose the actual viewership numbers.
What does this mean for us, aside from Wednesday night becoming Disney Plus night (or Disney Plus morning, to avoid spoilers)? Not much, really.
This makes sense because of how Disney's movies business is going back to normal, and its original content is really starting to deliver a steady stream of releases. We're set to get Ms. Marvel, Hawkeye and What If...? in 2021, along with many other non-Marvel Disney Plus shows. THR's sources back this up "the shift is designed to accommodate the increased volume of original content."
This makes sense, as Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals and many other feature films, will be coming out on Fridays. It's not hard to imagine that Disney's looking to make sure all the attention is focused on those films. It probably helps their marketing strategies as well, for scheduling ad buys before debuts.
Also, Disney isn't the only company releasing content, however much that may not appear to be true. Moving shows to Wednesdays means that they're not competing with other movies, as well as big shows from the likes of Netflix, Hulu and others.
As for the rest of the week? Thursdays are shared by HBO Max, Peacock and Paramount Plus.
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