Screenshot: Jody Serrano / Gizmodo / NBCUniversal
In another effort to win subscribers in the streaming wars, NBCUniversal announced on Thursday that it will make movies from Universal Pictures, Focus Features, Illumination, and DreamWorks Animation available on Peacock as early as 45 days after their release in theaters.
NBCUniversal—the owner of Peacock and Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, or UFEG, which all of the aforementioned movie studios belong to—detailed its plan in a press release on Thursday. The company said that the first new movies to debut on Peacock will be some of the biggest titles from the studios’ 2022 film state, including The 355, Ticket To Paradise, The Black Phone, Marry Me, The Bad Guys, Downton Abbey: A New Era, Ambulance, and Halloween Ends.
According to the release, NBCUniversal’s new streaming distribution plan for movies will not affect the studios’ existing premiere video-on-demand deals with movie theaters. Notably, though, it does shorten the traditional roughly 120-day window observed (pre-pandemic, that is) before movies hit streaming services, Variety pointed out.
“As we continue investing in the most valued and sought-after content for Peacock, films are essential to that mix,” Peacock president Kelly Campbell said in a statement. “The team at Universal Filmed Entertainment Group are fantastic partners and we are excited to bring their amazing slate of blockbuster films and beloved franchises to Peacock as early as 45 days after their theatrical release, and provide a steady stream of fresh, original films exclusively for Peacock customers throughout the year.”
While the movies that will premiere after 45 days are eye-catching—Downton Abbey: A New Era cannot get here fast enough—Variety reports that huge releases such as Jurassic World: Dominion, Minions: The Rise of Gru, and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer will not be on the quick path to streaming.
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The new 45-day streaming plan cuts down on the previous window laid out by Peacock in July, when it said all movies from UFEG studios would be available on Peacock four months after their initial release in theaters.
