Hulu has announced reaching a multi-year licensing agreement with Disney (NYSE:DIS) that will bring family favorites like Mulan, Pocahontas, and The Nightmare Before Christmas to the service. The deal gives the service exclusive subscription video on-demand rights to a specific collection of 50-plus animated and live-action films. The terms of the Hulu-Disney deal were not disclosed
Other titles now available to stream include Hercules, Sister Act, and Air Bud. Hulu senior vice president and head of content Craig Erwich, said in a statement, “Expanding our offering of top-rated kids and family programming has been a top priority for us, and we know viewers will love watching these films over and over again on our service.”
Many other titles will become available “over the coming months,” according to a statement from the company. Those titles include animated films Lilo & Stitch, Tarzan, The Emperor’s New Groove, and The Princess and the Frog, as well as other popular titles like Muppet Treasure Island, Con Air, Gone in 60 Seconds, and The Mighty Ducks.
The deal is Hulu’s first for Disney theatrical releases, but not its first dealings with the entertainment giant. Hulu reached a deal with The Disney-ABC Television Group earlier this year to stream Disney Channel and associated kids’ programming networks as well as more than 20 Disney Channel Original Movies. The Walt Disney Company owns a 30 percent stake in Hulu.
Disney is now splitting its movie library between multiple services. Disney’s upcoming Marvel, Pixar, and Lucasfilm titles, including Star Wars: Rogue One, are excluded from the deal with Hulu. Netflix has already reached a deal that grants it access to Disney films released theatrically in 2016 “from September and onwards.” The deal also allows Netflix to stream films from Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Marvel, Pixar, and Lucasfilm within the same window as they would on paid cable TV networks, like HBO.
The deal with Netflix was announced back in 2012 and the titles started streaming in the fall. Disney also offers its own streaming service, DisneyLife, in Europe. DisneyLife users can stream movies, TV, music and other content.
