Let this serve as an early apology to our family and friends. If, starting Nov. 17, it will seem like we have disappeared off the face of the earth, please don’t worry. We are safe and sound. We will just be riveted to our screens, happily falling into the magical rabbit (mouse?) hole that is Disney+.
Yes, the streaming platform we’ve been waiting for is launching in just days. After a few years of being jealous of all the countries that have access to it, Filipino audiences can finally (legally) dive into this treasure trove of titles from Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, National Geographic, Star, and more.
In an interview with Super, David Shin, The Walt Disney Company’s senior vice president and managing director for Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong, said, “As home to some of the most beloved franchises, Disney+ will introduce to consumers in the Philippines an exciting and vast library of entertainment content from our iconic brands, offering unforgettable moments, movies and entertainment experiences.”
This means access to their rich archives, newer content and also original Disney+ movies and shows. There are over 1,800 films and 32,000 episodes you can watch. (See why we’ll most likely be hibernating soon?)
Read: ‘Young Justice,’ ‘James Bond,’ ‘Star Wars Bounty Hunters’: This week’s Super comic book picks
Stars Wars and more
Want to watch all the Star Wars movies? They’re on Disney+.
“The Mandalorian,” “Andor” and other new titles from Lucasfilm? Yes, you’ll find them on Disney+. The classic Disney animations you grew up with and the new ones you watched and loved as an adult? They’re there, too. The Pixar titles that stole your heart? Also there. What about the blockbuster films from the Marvel cinematic universe? Yep, just taps or clicks away.
The new Marvel shows like “Hawkeye,” “Ms. Marvel,” “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”? Also waiting for you. Still catching up with the Kardashians? They’re on Disney+, too. In the mood for documentaries? National Geographic has a slew of titles for you. Wrestling fans can get access to premium live events and video-on-demand from World Wrestling Entertainment while those hooked on The Voice can watch the newest season of the singing competition on the platform.
Even shows from Hulu that we’ve been dying to see will be available on Disney+, said Shin. “Much of the content from Hulu will be available on Disney+ under the Star brand, which expands the breadth of our content offering to include more general entertainment such as ‘The Simpsons,’ and ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’”
There are also global, regional and Asian language content. Rebecca Campbell, The Walt Disney Company’s chairman for International Content & Operations told the media at D23 Expo, “We want to serve our viewer in every market with locally produced stories that resonate with them.”
Permission to watch
Shin told Super, “Our APAC content focus is currently centered on Korean drama and Japanese anime, as we believe they have the greatest potential to resonate in the region as well as to travel to global audiences.”
We asked Shin which titles he’s most excited about. “One of our most significant announcements in APAC this year is a global content collaboration we’ve forged with HYBE, South Korea’s entertainment lifestyle platform company and the management label of the world’s biggest global K-pop icons-BTS. One of these titles is
“BTS: Permission to Dance on Stage – LA,” a cinematic 4K concert film featuring their exhilarating live performance in Los Angeles’ Sofi Stadium last November.”
He shared, “I’m also excited about Big Mouth, a new 16-part Korean thriller that recently launched with great success in APAC with an A-list creative team and popular K-drama stars. It’s performing incredibly well to date.”
Expect new content to be added to the platform regularly as well.
But how much would all this cost?
You can choose to use Disney+ just on your smartphone and tablet—that means paying just P159 each month or P1,150 per year. With this plan, you can use Disney+ on one screen, with video quality of up to 720p HD. But we’re going for the premium plan, available for P369 monthly or P2,950 annually. The premium plan allows you to create up to seven profiles (perfect for families) and use four concurrent streams and gives you Disney+ access on your mobile devices, smart TVs like Samsung and LG, connected TV devices including Google TV, Apple TV 4K, Apple TV HD, other Android TV OS and Chromecast. Video quality for premium plans is up to 4K Ultra HD (2160p).
You can pay for your subscription using your credit cards, debit cards or as an Android/iOS in-app purchase.
Alipay+ and GCash are offering an early bird deal until Nov. 16—just pay P829 for a year’s mobile plan subscription or P2299 for a subscription to the premium plan through the Alipay+ Rewards on your GCash app. The special package also comes with a P5 Alipay+ voucher.
Shin said, “We believe that consumers in the Philippines will be drawn to our world-class storytelling and original content, powered by our iconic brands and franchises. The Disney brand is beloved by many in the Philippines and we look forward to making our amazing stories accessible to consumers.”
Visit disneyplus.com, or find the Disney+ app on compatible mobile and connected TV devices. Sign up starts on Nov. 17.
Here are just some of the many shows and movies we’re excited to stream on Disney+:
“Disenchanted”
“Enchanted,” the 2007 Walt Dsiney Pictures film about a fairy tale princess who ends up in New York, is one of our favorite movies and so we were thrilled when Disney announced the sequel “Disenchanted.” Stars Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, Idina Menzel and James Marden return along with Maya Rudolph who joins the cast. Onstage at the D23 Expo in September, Adams shared her beloved character Giselle’s journey in the new film. “She still has all the love and joy that we know about Giselle but she now finds herself in a slightly different position as a mother of an infant and a teenager and a wife who’s looking to find her way in the world with these new roles.”
“Disenchanted” will feature new songs from Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz and guess what? It debuts on Disney+ on Nov. 18. Watching it will be a wonderful way to celebrate the arrival of Disney+ in the country.
“Hocus Pocus 2”
Our Halloween felt incomplete because we have yet to see “Hocus Pocus 2,” which brings back to our screens the iconic Sanderson sisters played by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy. In a video shown to thousands of Disney fans at the D23 Expo, Parker said, “When we made ‘Hocus Pocus’ 29 years ago, we never dreamed it would have the impact it’s had.”
The trailer looks wicked fun and we cannot wait to watch the whole thing.
“Pinocchio”
We’re excited to see this live action retelling of the story of the wooden puppet who longs to be a boy. “Pinocchio” stars Tom Hanks as GeGeppetto and Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy while Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth lend their voices to Jiminy Cricket and Pinocchio.
“Peter Pan & Wendy”
Another live action reimagining we’re excited to see is “Peter Pan & Wendy” which stars Jude Law as Captain Hook. It will be a bit of a wait, though.
It comes out next year.
“Andor”
“This focuses on ‘Rogue One’ and the five years that led up to it,” said Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm at D23 Expo. “I couldn’t be happier to be partnering with Tony Gilroy. He created ‘The Bourne Identity’ series and he brought that tension into this series in such an amazing way.”
Diego Luna who plays Cassian Andor said, “We’re gonna go back five years and you won’t believe where you find these characters. When you see Cassian, you won’t believe he’s capable of doing what we saw him doing in ‘Rogue One.’ It’s about the awakening of a revolutionary. It’s about someone finding out that there’s a purpose, there’s something to fight for.”
We’re so ready for this 24-episode spy thriller. The first season has 12 episodes.
“Willow”
“Willow,” the 1988 movie created by George Lucas and Ron Howard, has inspired a new live-action fantasy-adventure series about an unlikely group of heroes on a dangerous quest.
Warwick Davis, who is back to reprise his role Willow Ufgood, said onstage the D23 Expo, “Willow Ufgood has always held such a special place in my heart. The idea that a hero can come from anywhere and against all odds prevail is a powerful one. I’m excited to welcome both returning fans and new ones back into this magical world and for the next chapter of Willow’s story. It’s such an honor to return to Andowyne alongside some familiar faces and a whole set of new characters.”
“Willow” will start streaming on Disney+ on Nov. 30.
“Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures”
Okay, we’re not really the target age of this series of animated shorts but we don’t care. We’re watching it because Nubs, a Jedi youngling who looks like a blue teddy bear, is a super cutie.
And it’s not just us. When this character was revealed at D23 Expo, a lot of people were smitten, with many taking to social media to declare their love. People want to protect Nubs, people would die for Nubs, they said. “This is now the best Star Wars character. Sorry to everyone else,” the Twitter account @FriendsOfForce posted.
“Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures” will be out in 2023.
“She-Hulk: Attorney at All”
We loved Tatiana Maslany and her many characters in “Orphan Black” and we cannot wait to watch her play Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk, a lawyer who specializes in cases involving superhumans in “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.”
“Ironheart”
“Ironheart,” which takes place after “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” focuses on Riri Williams (played by Dominique Thorne). Producer Ryan Coogler said he’s most excited about seeing Riri go up against Parker Robbins aka The Hood (played by Anthony Ramos). “Parker deals in the dark arts, he deals with magic. Riri is a technologist. We’ve had technological heroes and villains. Then we’ve had supernatural people dealing with magic. But we’ve never had the two at the same time.”
Ramos said, “Yeah, I’m really excited to see magic and technology go up against each other in this show.”
“Ironheart” will come out next year on Disney+.
“Secret Invasion”
Also coming out next year is Marvel’s new series “Secret Invasion” which has a stellar cast including Don Cheadle, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Olivia Colman, Emilia Clarke and Kingsley Ben-Adir.
Cheadle, who plays Colonel James Rhodes, said, “What I can tell you is that there’s going to be a lot of fun. I can tell you that it’s great to have Nick Fury, Sam Jackson, get to really be the tour de force that he is and take on those storylines. It’s incredibly exciting, I’m so glad to be part of it.”
“Echo”
In the Disney+ show “Hawkeye,” the character Maya Lopez, also known as Echo, was introduced. Alaqua Cox continues to play her in the spinoff in “Echo,” which will tell the origin story of this Native American deaf amputee. At D23 Expo, Cox, who is deaf, used ASL to express her excitement over the role. “Oh my gosh, what a journey this has been. This is only my second role I’ve ever had. And now I’m a lead. It’s just so crazy to me. It’s not that easy but I’m so lucky to have amazing costars. They really helped me through this giant journey I did.”
Filming wrapped a few months ago. It will be out next year.
“The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special”
Enjoy merry mayhem with Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Vin Diesel as Groot and Bradley Cooper as Rocket and more.
Written and directed by James Gunn, this special presentation for Marvel fans will be out Nov. 25.
“Behind the Attraction”
As big fans of Disney’s theme parks, we cannot wait to dive into this docuseries that explores some popular attractions, tracing their history and evolution and the continued love theme park goers have for them.
“Wedding Season”
“Wedding Season” is the first local Disney+ original from the UK, shared Lee Mason, The Walt Disney Company’s director of Scripted content for Europe, Middle East and Africa. “It’s a fast-paced comedy-drama packed with romance, mystery and murder.”
Starring Rosa Salazar and Gavin Drea, “Wedding Season” is “about two people who can’t stay away from each other and you can’t be completely sure that the other one isn’t a mass murderer,” said Mason.
“Only Murders in the Building”
Three true crime-obsessed strangers played by Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez come together to start a podcast about a death in the building they all live in.
This Hulu show created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman is right up our alley.
“Limitless with Chris Hemsworth”
In this six-episode docuseries, Chris Hemsworth pushes boundaries and explores the full potential of the human body with the help of experts and scientists.
“Revenge of Others”
This Star Original Korean drama tells the story of a high school student who sets out to avenge the death of her twin.
Revenge of Others stars Shin Yeeun, Lomon, Seo Jihoon, Chae Sangwoo and Lee Soomin. It is written by Lee Hee Myung and directed by Kim Yoojin.
“Santa Evita”
The limited series “Santa Evita” is based on the bestselling book by Tomás Eloy Martínez. Produced by Salma Hayek and directed by Rodrigo Garcia, this Disney+ original became the number one show in Latin America, said Fernando Barbosa, SVP of Distribution and Production for Latin America.
Barbosa said, “It tells the story of the 22-year-old journey of Eva Peron’s dead body during one of Latin America’s most feared military regimes. We did a wonderful reproduction of the book into an audio visual piece.”
Natalia Oreiro stars as Eva Peron.
“Growing Up”
Brie Larson and Culture.House created this hybrid docuseries that tell the coming-of-age stories of 10 young people from all sorts of backgrounds, their moments of triumph and the unique hurdles they faced. It promises to be an emotional, moving look at the realities of teenage life.
“American Born Chinese”
“American Born Chinese,” based on Gene Luen Yang’s graphic novel, is the story of Jin Wang (played by Ben Wang). Wang said at D23 Expo, “He just wants to be a regular kid doing regular things. But when a new student comes to town, Jin is suddenly thrown into a mythological world of gods, demonds and epic dangers.”
Other cast members include Yeo Yann Yann, Chin Han, Ke Huy Quan, Jimmy Liu and Daniel Wu. Executive producer and showrunner is Kelvin Yu who worked on “Bob’s Burgers.”
Michelle Yeoh, who plays Guanyin, said, “Without giving away too much, like everyone else in this show, I too play a character who jumps between worlds. And when necessary, I jump in the air and kick the bad guys’ butts. This is a show about the mysterious journey of finding your true self and realizing that you don’t have
to make that journey alone.”
She added, “Disney+ is the home of iconic global stories. We hope to add to that enduring catalog with our own unique groundbreaking story from our hearts to yours.”
“American Born Chinese” will be out next year.
