Streaming First, Then Theaters | A New Path for Movie Releases?
K-Pop Demon Hunters Breaks the Mold
A new release strategy may be quietly rewriting Hollywood’s playbook
Streaming first, theaters second.
The prime example… K-Pop: Demon Hunters.
The animated musical debuted on Netflix in June 2025 and became its most watched original film ever, pulling in 325 million views and earning a 95% Rotten Tomatoes score.
Riding that wave, Netflix staged a two day sing along theatrical run in late August (With a second stint coming in Late October). The result? A $19 million weekend and the streamer’s first ever #1 at the U.S. box office.
Many attendees had already streamed the film at home, but they wanted to experience it with a crowd. That’s the power of streaming hype fueling a theatrical encore.
More Films That Sorta Flipped the Script
K-Pop Demon Hunters isn’t an outlier… Though it’s now the prime example. In recent years, several titles have found fresh theatrical success after thriving on streaming.
CODA (2021) – Premiered on Apple TV+. After winning Best Picture, Apple re-released it in 600+ theaters with open captions and free screenings, turning streaming buzz into communal moviegoing.
Encanto (2021) – Its modest theatrical run ballooned into a cultural moment once it hit Disney+. After breaking streaming records with 27.4 billion minutes viewed, Disney brought it back to theaters for sing-alongs.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) – Opened for one week in 600 theaters to build buzz before streaming. That limited run made $13 million, proving Netflix films can draw crowds.
RRR (2022) – A Telugu language epic that went global after a Netflix drop. Its viral success led to sold-out encore screenings across U.S. cities and an Oscar win for “Naatu Naatu.”
These films thrived because streaming acted as a launchpad, even if it was first released in Theaters prior… letting audiences discover and evangelize a movie before its theatrical moment. Mid budget, genre, musical, and international films seem to benefit most from this strategy though.
Not All Films Will Benefit From This
This isn’t a one size fits all approach.
Tentpoles like Avengers or Avatar heavily depend on massive opening weekends to recoup costs.
Studios fear streaming first would eat into box office potential.
Analysts estimate K-Pop Demon Hunters might have opened near $100 million if it had been theatrical first… a trade off blockbuster studios aren’t willing to make… and understandably so.
A Hybrid Model Takes Shape
This strategy is still in its experimental phase, but it’s gaining traction.
Streaming viewership is becoming a new metric for theatrical viability. A film can skip theaters or underperform initially, then find renewed life after proving itself online.
Netflix scored its first #1 with K-Pop Demon Hunters. Disney turned Encanto into a sleeper hit. RRR became a global sensation through word of mouth.
And we may be seeing early signs of the same with Superman (2025). After earning $617+ million at the global box office, the film has exploded in popularity on HBO Max, pulling in strong streaming numbers and fueling ongoing fan conversation.
If that momentum holds, a strategic theatrical re-release could give it another box office bump, and bolster its cultural footprint.
Of course, timing and presentation would be everything. A simple re-release wouldn’t cut it… it would need to feel like an event with special screenings, fan incentives, or a celebratory campaign to make audiences show up again.
For studios, this hybrid model offers flexibility by turning streaming hits into big screen events.
For audiences, it blurs the line between home and theater… today’s streaming obsession could be tomorrow’s communal movie night.
The future of cinema might not be a fight between platforms, but a partnership
