By Kristen Cignarella, Julia Pizzuto, and Jackie O’Rourke
Staff Writer/ Assistant A&E Editor/ A&E Editor
Due to the mandated social distancing in many areas, several films and TV shows have been made available on streaming services before or shortly after their original release dates.
The Disney Pixar film “Onward” was released in theatres on March 6. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, it began streaming on Disney+ on April 3.
“I thought ‘Onward’ was a very funny and heartwarming movie. It’s time in movie theaters was unfortunately short-lived. I thought the fact that Disney chose to release it to Disney+ early was an absolutely fantastic idea,” said junior Jackie Clifford, who is an alumni of the Disney College Program.
Soon after its release on Disney+, the film was made available for digital purchase anywhere.
“If you and your family didn’t get a chance to see it in theaters, you can watch it from the comfort and safety of your own home. Nice work, Disney!” said actor Chris Pratt, who voiced the role of Barely in the film, in an Instagram post from March 20.
The Dreamworks animated film “Trolls World Tour,” the sequel to “Trolls” (2016), was set to be released on April 10. Instead, it went directly to streaming services.
“Of course we wanted everyone to see ‘Trolls World Tour’ in a movie theater, but I’m so happy we can bring the movie theater to you,” said actress Anna Kendrick, who voices the role of Princess Poppy in the “Trolls” films, on Instagram on April 10.
“The Invisible Man,” a monster movie reboot by Universal, was originally released on Feb. 28. Since March 20, the film has been streaming on Universal’s early Video on Demand in order to garner the audience that was not able to view the film in theaters due to the pandemic.
Another movie that was affected by the pandemic was Jane Austen’s “Emma,” a film set in the early 19th century. The movie’s original release date was Feb. 21, with the film remaining in theaters for approximately two weeks. It was then decided that the movie would be released early for streaming on March 20 on iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Prime and Fandango Now.
“Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)” hit the theaters on Feb. 7 and has begun streaming earlier than originally scheduled. It became available on both Amazon and iTunes on March 24.
“I’ve been using Netflix more and Hulu TV. I’ve watched ‘Flavors of Youth’ on Netflix, ‘My Hero Academia’ on Hulu TV, and ‘Lu Over the Wall,’ also on Netflix. It has been a blast,” said junior Kiera Cutri.
Along with movies, many TV show episodes began streaming as well. As noted in the New York Post, some of the best TV shows to stream during the quarantine are “Leftovers” (HBO GO); “Lovesick” (Netflix); “Picnic at Hanging Rock “(Amazon); “Derry Girl“ (Netflix); “Pen15” (Hulu); “Alias Grace” (Netflix); “ Black Sails” (Hulu); “Justified” (Hulu/Amazon); and “Peaky Blinders” (Netflix).
Regarding TV shows to stream, Junior Kimberly Mulvihill said, “I’ve watched ‘Tiger King’ on Netflix — that show is a trip!”
“This allows families who didn’t get to go out to the movies before the craziness started to be able to watch in the comfort of their home,” said Clifford.
