What was Disney Plus Premier Access and what could you watch with it?

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Disney Plus Premier Access arrived on the House of Mouse's very own streaming platform back in September 2020. It allowed those eager to watch the latest cinematic release from Walt Disney Studios from the comfort of their own home at a premium during the the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw movie theaters around the world shut their doors for months on end.

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Initially rolled out with the release of the live action version of Mulan, we thereafter saw the same treatment for a number of titles including Emma Stone's portrayal in Cruella, and the highly-anticipated arrival of Marvel's Black Widow.

The last Premier Access title to land on the service was The Rock's Jungle Cruise on July 30, before its subsequent arrival on the main Disney Plus platform for Disney Plus Day months later.

What was Disney Plus Premier access?

Disney Plus Premier Access went some way towards recreating the cinema experience. Brand new titles fresh from Walt Disney Studios were made available on Disney Plus day-and-date with their theatrical release, meaning you could enjoy them from the comfort of your home for an additional one-off fee.

Not only could you share the excitement of the latest big-budget film with family or friends for $30 (the price of two movie theater tickets), but Premier titles were available to watch in stunning UHD or HDR quality and with Dolby Audio sound.

Subscribers could also watch the movie time and time again. That in addition to enjoying the latest Disney extravaganza months before it was made available to regular Disney Plus subscribers.

Dawyne Johnson and Emily Blunt in Disney Plus Premier Access title Jungle Cruise — (Image credit: Disney)

What could I watch on Disney Plus Premier Access?

Jungle Cruise was the fifth and final title to arrive on Disney Plus Premier Access on July 30, 2021, not long after Black Widow on July 9, where subscribers could finally learn more about the enigmatic Natasha Romanoff and her making as a lethal spy.

Previously to that, Cruella dropped on Disney Plus' PVOD on May 28, arriving on August 28 to watch with a regular Disney Plus subscription.

Animated fantasy-adventure Raya and the Last Dragon was the platform’s second Disney Plus Premier Access title, released on March 5, with the advanced viewing window ending on May 4. The film arrived for all Disney Plus subscribers to watch on June 4.

Disney Plus Premier Access films in full

Mulan (Sep 4 - Nov 4 2020)
Raya and the Last Dragon (March 5 - June 4 2021)
Cruella (May 28 - August 27 2021)
Black Widow (Released July 9 - October 6 2021)
Jungle Cruise (Released July 30 - November 12 2021)

How much was Disney Plus Premier Access?

Depending on where you were around the world, Disney Plus Premier Access titles cost USD $29.99 / GBP £19.99 / AUD $34.99 / EUR €21.99.

The Disney Plus price was something worth factoring in. A monthly subscription at the time was USD $7.99 / GBP £7.99 / AUD $11.99 / EUR €8.99.

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Daniel Pateman is a freelance writer, producing articles across the cultural spectrum for magazines like Aesthetica, Photomonitor, The Brooklyn Rail and This is Tomorrow. He also provides text-writing services to individual curators and artists worldwide, and has had work published internationally. His favourite film genre is horror (bring on Scream 5!) and he never tires of listening to Absolute 80s on the radio.

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