Disney movies and TV shows have been well represented on streaming platforms like Netflix and Hulu in the past few years, but soon the Mouse House will be setting up its own home for digital content. Last August, it was announced that Disney is creating is own streaming service that will be filled with both pre-existing and original content. However, if you're looking to watch any R-rated movies on the service, you'll be out of luck.
We're still over a year away from the Disney streaming service launching (it will happen sometime in fall 2019), but supposedly the decision has already been made to not feature any R-rated movies as part of the lineup. Instead, the R-rated fare will go to Hulu, which Disney owns a 30% stock in and currently has some of its movies available. This decision isn't terribly shocking, as most Disney theatrical projects, whether they hail from the main label or come from somewhere else like Marvel Studios, rarely go past PG-13. Disney also has a reputation for being family-friendly, so while some of the movies that will be available on the service may not be suitable for extremely young viewers, at least there's no chance that these young'uns could stumble across something that has excessive violence, a lot of cursing, etc.
Along with reporting about the lack of R-rated material on Disney's streaming service, Deadline also listed some of the movies that are being prioritized specifically for the service. Of particular note is the live action remake of The Sword and the Stone, which was originally intended to be a theatrical release, as well as a Lady and the Tramp remake, presumably re-creating the central animals Jungle Book-style. Other in-development movies include The Paper Magician, Stargirl, Togo, 3 Men and a Baby and Timmy Failure. Then there's the Anna Kendrick Christmas comedy Noelle and the Mark Waters-directed Magic Camp, both of which are in post-production and are heading to the streaming service. The plan right now is to produce four to five original movies per year, though as the years pass, perhaps that amount will increase.
It's safe to say that once the Disney streaming service gets off the ground, it's going to provide some major competition to the existing platforms, and it's doubtful that not including any R-rated movies will have a detrimental effect. Between its classic animated movies, Pixar projects, Marvel, Star Wars and plenty more, Disney will have enough to keep fans young and old entertained. So if you're eager to watch an R-rated theatrical presentation that hails from some corner of the Disney media empire, you'll need to stick with Hulu, or just go to Netflix and Amazon to see what other companies are cooking up.
