If it works, then I could see Disney considering such a release for the likes of Black Widow, Cruella and/or Luca in May and June. Raya and the Last Dragon will be a test in terms of a (presumably) well-received tentpole going out theatrically and on Disney+ Premier Access. In terms of big kid-friendly movies, Raya would have been the only game in town for months. Raya and the Last Dragon might have legged out alongside No Time to Die and Dune, both of which would have skewed older and will be fan-specific properties. Banks, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug) skewed older or fan-specific. Frozen legged out in late 2013 and early 2014 ($400 million domestic from a $93 million Wed-Sun Thanksgiving debut) partially because the Christmas biggies ( Saving Mr. Had this one opened last Thanksgiving in a non-Covid timeline, it likely would have ran the tables.

There is a certain karmic justice in Kelly Marie Tran, who took the worst of it from the Last Jedi backlash (in terms of being driven offline by racist and sexist trolls and being almost entirely cut out of The Rise of Skywalker), now headlining a big-budget Disney animated actioner. As for the movie, it frankly looks terrific, with striking imagery, a “comedy but with action” vibe that gels with the likes of Moana and the first half of the animated Mulan and the promise of yet another viable addition to Disney’s (official or otherwise) “princess” library.

Raya the last dragon movie trailer