As the pandemic made traditional theatrical releases unviable for major studios, Disney was one of the many companies to find a new home for their films on streaming. While this pivot towards Disney Plus as the first place for Disney projects was undoubtedly sped up by the lockdowns, there's an argument to be made that the shift to streaming as a primary platform was inevitable. Indeed, it seems that Disney's Executive Chairman, Bob Iger, has been happy with the shift change and has no intention of backing away from Disney Plus.
While Disney is still in the business of theatrical film releases, this year saw them move more time and investment than ever into their own proprietary streaming service, Disney Plus. This strategy became clear when Disney announced a massive wave of projects, both Marvel and Star Wars focused, that would be coming exclusively to their streaming platform. Now that 2 of those Marvel shows have already run their course, it seems to have paid off for them in a big way.
The success of WandaVision and The Falcon and The Winter Soldier has proven that fans will continue to come out in droves for the latest Marvel content on Disney Plus, even if they have to pay a subscription to do so. Despite having been planned to come out after Phase 4 had already begun, WandaVision was instead forced to fire the starting gun itself and managed to rally an audience that adored it, getting people on board for this new streaming-focused era of the MCU.
As Iger mentioned during his acceptance of a Clio award, Disney's acquisition of companies like Fox and Lucasfilm during his tenure were risky ventures, but streaming may have been the bigger gamble: "The move from essentially traditional forms of distribution... to Disney+ and Hulu and ESPN+, was a tremendous risk." In essence, Disney was putting a lot of investment into this new wave of distribution, and hoping that people would respond well to it. Luckily for them, people did: "People have gotten a lot more comfortable watching movies and television shows in their homes, particularly using new technology to do so."
While some like Fast and Furious 9 star Vin Diesel have been eagerly awaiting the return of traditional theater experiences, especially as vaccination rates get higher and higher, it does seem that things are not going to return to the way they were before the pandemic, not completely. Though the pandemic made the shift to streaming a necessity, it was likely inevitable, even without the closing of theaters.
Disney Plus isn't going anywhere anytime soon, and neither are its competitors. As Iger himself stated, "that's certainly one example of the disruption that was beginning, then hastened, and will probably be here to stay."
Disney Plus is currently available in multiple countries worldwide, including the United States and Canada.
Source: Clio Awards