Disney Dominates the 2023 Steaming Movie Charts As ‘Moana’ and ‘Encanto’ Lead the Way
2023 may have been a disappointing year for The Walt Disney Company at the box office, but we might also look back at it as the year that Disney finally got streaming right.
The headline news last year was Disney’s decision to buy out Comcast’s take in Hulu and merge the streaming service’s library with Disney+. With the new “one app experience” launching in December of last year, Disney finally looks to be on the path to streamlining its streaming platforms.
(Photo Illustration by Mateusz Slodkowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
A Strong Year For Star Wars and Marvel
On an individual level, Disney has found success with scripted series and theatrically released films on streaming.
Photo: starwarsnewsnet.com/IGN
The Mandalorian continued to anchor Disney+, accounting for 12.3 billion streaming minutes. That number was good for 8th overall on any streaming platform.
Other streaming releases, including Loki, Ahsoka, and Percy Jackson and the Olympians also posted strong numbers. While they were released too late in the year to dent the Top 10 series of 2023 in total streaming minutes, all three shows delivered substantial audiences which held throughout their runs.
Photo: Disney
Bluey, meanwhile, continued to dominate streaming, landing as the #2 acquired streaming program of 2023, behind only Suits.
Disney Dominates the Movie Charts
Speaking of the 2023 numbers, Disney once again was the big winner when it came to films.
Photo: Disney
Moana, which debuted on Disney+ in 2019, continued to be a fan favorite. The film bested all other movies in 2023 with an all-time high of 11.6 billion viewing minutes.
Since arriving on Disney+, Moana has landed in the top four spots every year, accumulating 80 billion minutes of streaming. That would translate to watching the full movie 775 million times.
Photo: Also Disney+
Coming in second on the charts was Disney’s Encanto, which continues to be a monster on streaming. Originally released in 2021, the film topped the movie list in 2022 before ceding the number-one slot to Moana. Last year, Encanto brought in just under 10 billion viewing minutes, which was down from 27.4 billion the year before.
Elemental’s Hot Streak Carried Over to Streaming
Pixar will likely be thrilled that last year’s Elemental came at #4 on the streaming charts despite not hitting Disney+ until September.
Photo: Pixar
The Pixar love story between a fire element named Ember and a water element named Wade proved to be a sleeper hit at the box office after surviving a disastrous opening weekend. The film’s success carried over to streaming, where it racked up 8.6 million minutes viewed.
Other Wins For Disney
Disney+ also accounted for the 7th, 8th, and 9th most-watched movies of 2023, with Frozen, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Avatar: The Way of Water, respectively.
Source: 20th Century Studios
Frozen’s inclusion on the list proves the franchise’s staying power 10 years after the initial film was released. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Avatar: The Way of Water, meanwhile, were two of the biggest blockbusters of 2022, making their streaming success somewhat expected.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever came in at #8 on the 2023 streaming charts. Photo: Marvel
As Disney enters the streaming era with both feet forward, it is going to have to rely on its animated canon in addition to new releases. 2023, then, could provide a blueprint for the company moving forward.
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