It’s a good time to be a Canadian Star Wars fan. Netflix has acquired exclusive streaming rights to Disney’s Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens for its Canadian subscribers, starting some time in late summer 2016.
Netflix’s acquisition of streaming rights to Disney’s seventh installment in the Star Wars franchise came at a particularly advantageous moment in the Mouse House’s distribution timeline for Canada. While Netflix’s pact with Disney doesn’t begin until 2016, the agreement includes any 2015 titles released after Disney’s previous distribution deals with Canada’s Corus Entertainment and Bell Canada come to an end. Since The Force Awakens drops on December 18, 2015, this means Netflix Canada gained streaming rights to the highly-anticipated flick.
In the U.S., however, Netflix subscribers who also aren’t pay-TV customers won’t get to stream Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens anytime soon. Disney has an exclusive pay-TV distribution deal with cable channel Starz through the end of 2015, which means The Force Awakens will catch the tail-end of that deal and live on Starz for a while. Only after Disney and Starz end their contract will Netflix U.S. have a chance at picking up rights to The Force Awakens.
And U.K. residents shouldn’t expect to see The Force Awakens on any streaming service, either. While Disney has plans to release its own subscription service called Disney Life in Great Britain, the platform won’t include any titles from either the Star Wars or Marvel franchises. Variety reports Disney is considering launching individual services for the science fiction and comic book-themed brands in the future.
The Force Awakens won’t hit Netflix Canada (or any other region) anytime soon. Under the deal with Disney, Netflix will start streaming The Force Awakens in the Great White North in August 2016, approximately eight months after the film hits theaters on December 18, 2015. However, Netflix CCO Ted Sarandos said in a Q3 2015 earnings call the streaming platform is in talks with Disney to license old Star Wars movies.
“It’s up to Disney how they want to manage access to those assets before, during or after the release of Star Wars VII,” Sarandos explained. “So it’s certainly an ongoing discussion.”
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