When To Stream’s Weekly Tracking Report
Welcome to When To Stream’s Weekly Tracking Report. Every Friday, we’ll break down the film titles whose first window streaming premieres are still not confirmed. This column will not examine second window SVOD premieres, though we’ll obviously still be tracking and reporting those.
One note: There are hundreds of new films every year, and we’re not able to track or highlight every single one. For now, we concentrate on major studio and indie distributor releases. If there are titles you’d like us to track, let us know in the comments. We’ll do our best to follow up, but might not have the bandwidth to spotlight fully.
Here are the film titles (in order of theatrical release) we are currently tracking:
Theatrical Release Date: July 28, 2023
Tracking: Reports indicate a Blu-ray release date in Japan is set for 2/28/24, so there’s hope a US release date is concurrent. We’re sticking with our estimate for now.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: February/March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: September 22, 2023
Tracking: With no announcement and no pre-order listing, it’s looking like a first quarter 2024 launch. It is a re-issue, so it’s possible A24 skips a PVOD release and jumps right to an SVOD premiere, maybe to kick off their Max partnership.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD/SVOD Estimate: January/February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: October 4, 2023
Tracking: Still no announcement from Sony Pictures Classics, and no pre-order available. The film was just short-listed for the Best Live-Action Short Oscar, so SPC could be waiting for a possible nomination to release to streaming. For now, we’re sticking with our estimate.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: January 2024
Theatrical Release Date: October 27, 2023
Tracking: Angel Studios launched the title on their streaming platform on 12/11, which makes it available to their ‘Angel Investors.’ Still no announcement or pre-order available. We do have a VOD rental date (1/26), but are waiting to see if it gets a VOD Sale-Only release first a week or two earlier..
Pre-Order Availability: No
VOD Estimate: January 26, 2024
Theatrical Release Date: November 3, 2023
Tracking: Still no announcement, and no pre-order listing yet. We’re hoping for an announcement in the next week or two.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: January 2024
Theatrical Release Date: November 10, 2023
Tracking: Both Antman 3 and Guardians Vol. 3 enjoyed 60-day theatrical exclusive windows earlier in the year. We have no reason to believe Disney will alter their strategy for The Marvels. We’ll hopefully hear some news next week.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Mid January 2024
ORLANDO, MY POLITICAL BIOGRAPHY
Theatrical Release Date: November 10, 2023
Tracking: Janus keeps their films exclusively in theaters between 3 and 4 months. That means it’s unlikely we’ll see Orlando on PVOD or Criterion Channel until early next year.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD/SVOD Estimate: Late February/Early March 2024 (Criterion Channel)
Theatrical Release Date: November 10, 2023
Tracking: A Still Small Voice is being distributed by Abramorama Films, whose digital releases are all over the map. The film was short-listed for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar. Look for it to get fast-tracked to PVOD if it gets nominated.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late January 2024
Theatrical Release Date: November 17, 2023
Theatrical Release Date: November 17, 2023
Tracking: Continuing its hot streak, Fallen Leaves was short-listed for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar. With two Golden Globe nominations, look for MUBI to capitalize with a late January release.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD/SVOD Estimate: Mid/Late January 2024 (MUBI)
Theatrical Release Date: November 22, 2023
Tracking: A PVOD date of 1/9 is expected.
Theatrical Release Date: November 22, 2023
Tracking: The days of Encanto, which hit Disney+ about a month after its theatrical launch, are long over. Disney has been trying to re-train its audience not to expect short windows. Elemental’s long legs at the box-office seems to indicate it’s working. We expect Wish will follow Disney’s new normal: a 60-day exclusive theatrical window, followed by a one-month PVOD window.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late January 2024
SVOD Estimate: Late February 2024 (Disney+)
Theatrical Release Date: November 22, 2023
Tracking: The latest epic documentary from Frederick Wiseman will slowly roll-out in theaters through the winter. Like his other films, this one will not be distributed through traditional digital or VOD platforms. Instead, it will eventually stream through Kanopy, which can be accessed with a local library card.
Pre-Order Availability: No
SVOD Estimate: Mid 2024 (Kanopy)
Theatrical Release Date: December 1, 2023
Tracking: A real wild card. Not much history to go off of with distributor Toho International. We’re estimating at least a 60-day exclusive theatrical window, with an SVOD partner coming on board as well. It’s box-office success and great word of mouth has us pushing back our estimate a bit.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late February 2024
RENAISSANCE: A FILM BY BEYONCE
Theatrical Release Date: December 1, 2023
Tracking: With Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour announcing a PVOD debut after a 60-day theatrical window, we have a bit of a template for AMC Theaters’s distribution arm. We’re thinking Queen Bey got the same deal.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Early February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 1, 2023
Tracking: Angel Studios has made The Shift available on their streaming platform, but only for their ‘Angel Investors.’ We should have a better idea of PVOD availability when we get a launch date for their earlier release, After Death.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Early February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 8, 2023
Tracking: Wim Wenders’ first of two film this winter (PERFECT DAYS will come early in 2024) is best experienced in 3D. Janus Films will likely keep this in theaters as long as they can, as they should. We don’t expect any sort of streaming release until Spring 2024.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD/SVOD Estimate: Mid March 2024 (Criterion Channel)
Theatrical Release Date: December 8, 2023
Tracking: Although it’s been screening in limited release for a few weeks, we’re treating 12/8 as its proper release date. As with most GKIDS releases, it’s likely to have a long theatrical-exclusive window. The film did become available for pre-order on iTunes, so there’s hope an earlier launch is planned. We’ve adjusted our estimate a bit to reflect.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($19.99)
PVOD Estimate: Late February/Early March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 8, 2023
Tracking: Poor Things is losing about 50 screens this weekend, down from 800 to 750. We’re assuming a wider release is planned after Oscar nominations are announced on January 23rd. Still not available for pre-order. We’re sticking with our estimate for now.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late February 2024
SVOD Estimate: Late March 2024 (Hulu)
Theatrical Release Date: December 15, 2023
Tracking: Wonka was the top choice for moviegoers over the holidays, and it continues to pull in audiences. The film is available for pre-order with select digital retailers (Amazon, iTunes), and it’s priced for PVOD ($24.99). For now, we’re holding on our estimate.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($24.99)
PVOD Estimate: Late January/Early February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 15, 2023
Tracking: Expanding semi-wide in the next week, we’ll see if American Fiction takes the Saltburn route (5 weeks to SVOD) or the Foe route (4.5 weeks to PVOD). We suppose major Oscar nominations and breakout box-office could delay streaming, but we’ve seen nothing to indicate Amazon MGM has much patience.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Early February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 15, 2023
Tracking: Expanding to more cities over the holidays, we think A24 will be in it for the long haul. Oscar nominations are likely, and the indie has shown patience with even their smallest titles. This one will take its sweet time to get to streaming.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late February/Early March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: Searchlight Pictures is rolling this out slowly. Look for a wider theatrical release in January, with a probable PVOD date around the Oscars in March.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Early March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: Sony’s winter rom-com is the surprise leggy hit of the season. Week to week percentage drops have been negligible, and the film is projected to reach $50m. As for a PVOD release, still seems like a perfect fit for Valentine’s Day.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Early/Mid February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: Neither a surprise hit nor an unmitigated disaster, Aquaman is chugging along in theaters. Warner Bros is likely to hold off on a quick PVOD release, so we’re sticking with our estimate.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($24.99)
PVOD Estimate: Early February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: A decade ago, this is the sort of Sony Pictures Classics release that would have legged out $5m - $10 over the course of its run. Nowadays, it’ll be lucky to hit $1M. We don’t foresee any Oscar nominations in its future, but we also don’t think SPC will fast track it to PVOD.
Pre-Order Availability: No
VOD Estimate: Late March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: A24’s family wrestling drama is one of A24’s top performing tiles of 2023. Word of mouth is positive, so here’s hoping it’s able to maintain its theater count for a few more weeks. Still no pre-order available, so for now, we’re sticking with our estimate.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: Not much buzz around this Ketchup Entertainment release. The film is going in to expanded release this weekend. We’re sticking with our estimate for now.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: Late January 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 22, 2023
Tracking: Still feels likely that Universal will stick to 1/23/24 for PVOD, though we have no official confirmation yet. We should be able to corroborate by next week.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($29.99)
PVOD Estimate: Late January 2023
Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2023
Tracking: George Clooney’s latest directorial effort opened strong on Christmas Day, and has been holding decently since. Eagle-eyed Canadian X/Twitter friend Zachary Culleton passed along a Prime Video ad (for Canada) that features some PVOD dates (see screenshot). The Boys in the Boat is dated for 1/16/23. We’ll wait to call that confirmed until another retailer lists, but we’re revising our projection based on this intel.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: January 16, 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2023
Tracking: After a spectacular opening day, The Color Purple has come down to earth at the box office. We’ll see how front loaded the demand truly was in the next week or so. The film is available for pre-order with digital retailers, and it’s priced for PVOD ($24.99). Based on that, we’re estimating Warner Bros won’t wait too long to release on digital.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($24.99)
PVOD Estimate: Late January/Early February 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2023
Tracking: As you probably noticed in the Prime Video ad above, Ferrari is also among the titles listed. The film has underperformed at the box-office, so it would be no surprise to see NEON quickly pivot to PVOD. As with The Boys in the Boat, we’ll hold off confirming until we find another retailer to corroborate.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($24.99)
PVOD Estimate: January 23, 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2023
Tracking: Steve McQueen’s 4-hour documentary hasn’t received much attention from awards bodies, and A24 has yet to report any grosses from its limited opening. We’re thinking the distributor will take its time rolling it out nationally, so no digital or PVOD date anytime soon. In fact, it might be a good candidate for a premiere on HBO/Max in the coming months. We’ll see.
Pre-Order Availability: No
PVOD Estimate: March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2023
Tracking: Sony Pictures Classics will roll this out slowly and hope it gets a Best International Feature Oscar nomination. Even if it doesn’t, the distributor will likely stick to its usual 90-day theatrical window.
Pre-Order Availability: No
VOD Estimate: Late March 2024
Theatrical Release Date: January 5, 2024
Tracking: Night Swim is taking the M3GAN release slot that was a spectacular success for Universal last year. Night Swim looks unlikely to replicate that success, as tracking and reviews have been sub-par. No reason to believe Universal won’t stick to the 18-day window.
Pre-Order Availability: Yes ($29.99)
PVOD Estimate: January 23, 2024
