Disney+ Shifts All New Original Series Releases From Fridays to Wednesdays

Disney+ wants to own Wednesday viewing. To make it happen, the streamer will begin releasing all of its original series on Wednesdays instead of on Fridays next month. The shift in the streamer's release schedule comes after last week's successful premiere of Marvel original series Loki, which was the first-ever Disney+ original to debut on a Wednesday instead of Friday. The series, starring Tom Hiddleston in the titular role, quickly became “the most-watched season premiere ever on Disney+” in its first week on the service, Disney CEO Bob Chapek said Monday at Credit Suisse’s communications conference. Previously, Disney+ had been in the habit of releasing its originals, including The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, WandaVision and the first two seasons of The Mandalorian, on Fridays. The shift means a rejiggering of the releases of several upcoming originals and will push some of them back slightly. Last week, Disney+ had said Monsters at Work, an animated spinoff of the Pixar animated film Monsters Inc., would premiere on Wednesday, July 7 instead of its previously planned Friday, July 2 debut. Turner & Hooch, a continuation of the 1989 film starring Tom Hanks, will shift from July 16 to its new Wednesday premiere of July 21. Other shifts include Behind the Attraction (from July 16 to July 21), Chip ‘n’ Dale: Park Life (from July 23 to July 28), Turning the Tables With Robin Roberts (from July 30 to July 28), the second batch of The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse (from July 30 to July 28), Growing Up Animal (from Aug. 20 to Aug. 18) and the second season of Short Circuit (from July 30 to Aug. 4). However, Disney+ original movies will continue to premiere on Fridays. Streamers reevaluate release schedules The move comes as streamers continue evaluating their release schedules as they look for ways to build viewing habits that keep consumers coming back week after week. Disney+, which cleared 100 million subscribers in March, is looking to make Wednesdays a "must-stream" night in an effort to continue growing subscriber bases while also keeping existing customers. Additionally, Wednesdays are less crowded than Fridays, which is when Netflix, which cleared 200 million global subscribers in January, releases many of its originals, including the international phenomenon Lupin. Netflix, though, has experimented with other approaches depending on the kind of programming it is premiering. In March, it looked to dominate Wednesday reality viewing by announcing it would release two of its biggest reality series’ sophomore seasons in small batches on Wednesdays. Other streamers have taken a different tack. Services like HBO Max, Peacock and even Paramount+ have begun to make inroads on Thursday viewing, which has long been an essential programming night on linear, by releasing new originals like the Friends reunion special and Girls5Eva that day. Loki Will Be First Disney+ Show Released on Wednesdays Instead of Fridays