Artemis Fowl, originally set for cinemas, gets a Disney Plus release date

Update, April 17 2020 (1:08AM ET): We now have a date for when Artemis Fowl will drop on Disney Plus. Subscribers of the streaming service can watch the new movie on June 12.

The news comes after Disney earlier announced that the movie, originally set for a theatrical release, would indeed miss cinemas. However, it added that several other films scheduled for a theatrical release would be delayed instead.

Original story, April 3 2020 (5:27PM ET): Disney Plus will be the new home for Artemis Fowl. The fantasy movie from Disney was originally supposed to be released to theaters first. However, the studio has now decided to bypass theaters completely, and it will make its debut on its streaming service. If you haven’t done so already, you can sign up for the service now at the link below.

Disney revealed this decision today in a press release, as part of a number of changes it is making to its theatrical release schedule. It has also announced new release dates for its live-action remake of Mulan, which will now be released to theaters on July 24. Also, Black Widow, the next movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, will be released on November 6.

However, it’s the big change to Artemis Fowl’s launch plans — a movie with an estimated budget of $125 million — that will likely make some people in the movie industry sit up and take notice. 

What is Artemis Fowl?

The movie is based on the young adult book series of the same name by author Eoin Colfer. The title character is a 12-year old boy who is the child of a criminal mastermind who has gone missing. In his search to find his father, Artemis discovers that his dad was keeping some major secrets, including the knowledge of a hidden world of fairies. Kenneth Branagh (Thor, Cinderella) directed the movie, which stars Josh Gad, Colin Farrell, and Judi Dench.

The movie was originally due for release in theaters for August 2019, before Disney decided to release it in May 2020. Now, it will no longer be going to theaters at all.  This could cause some animosity between Disney and movie theater operators. They had already announced some displeasure at Universal’s move to also pull Trolls World Tour from theaters. Instead, it was released via digital stores on April 10.

What do you think of this decision by Disney, and could we see even more coronavirus-delayed movies bypass theaters for some kind of digital release?