As more movie studios continue to push back on their already delayed release dates for 2021, Disney is set on not letting their fans and Disney Plus subscribers, as a new trailer for Raya and the Last Dragon has just confirmed the movie’s March 5 premiere.
Raya and the Last Dragon is Walt Disney Animation Studios’ latest feature film which was revealed last summer with an originally scheduled release for November 25, 2020, until Disney completely reshuffled its movie lineup due to the ongoing pandemic. Initially set for March 12, the movie was then pushed up by a week, making it a likely competitor for Warner’s live-action Tom & Jerry which opens a few days earlier.
The new trailer gives a first look at the actual last dragon, a rather humorous and underperforming blue mythical beast (voiced by Awkwafina), as well as the rag tag crew that Raya (Kelly Marie Tran) has to recruit in order to restore balance and peace in Kumandra, the fictional world where all of this takes place. Of course, that won’t be as easy considering her rival Namaari (Gemma Chan) is also shown in the trailer.
Raya and the Last Dragon looks even more gorgeous than it did in its first reveal with this new trailer providing a better look at the very colorful world of Kumandra where both humans and dragons lived together 500 years ago, all in a much different way than the darker environments showed back in October 2020.
Overall, Raya and the Last Dragon represents one of the bigger bets Disney had in store for last year and now 2021, even if not in the same tier as Black Widow. Without the added controversy Mulan sparked it will serve as a fantastic second experiment for a dual theatrical and streaming release, as the movie will launch on the same day on Disney Plus with an added cost ($29.99) as part of the platform’s “Premier Access” content, so how well it Raya and the Last Dragon manages to do in the box office could influence the studio's plan for the first half of the year.
Disney themselves recently delayed several of their smaller releases for 2021, like The King’s Man and Bob’s Burgers, but with Raya and the Last Dragon, the company might be gunning for an animated film that can draw new subscribers just like Pixar’s Soul did during Christmas while users wait for the latest Marvel and Star Wars content to drop on Disney Plus.
Raya and the Last Dragon will be available in theaters and on Disney Plus starting March 15, 2021.