‘Hamilton’ Causes 72 Percent Increase In Disney+ App Downloads
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s smash hit Broadway musical Hamilton debuted on Disney+ Friday, July 3rd, in anticipation of Fourth of July weekend. The filmed 2016 performance featuring the original Broadway cast proved to be monstrously successful for the streaming platform, causing a significant rise in app downloads in the U.S. over the weekend According to Variety, the Disney+ app was downloaded 266,084 times domestically (513,323 times globally) from Friday through Sunday. Compared to the last four weekends in June, this marks a 72.4 percent increase in U.S. downloads. Worldwide, app downloads shot up 46.6 percent higher than the average.
Considering how hard (and expensive) it was to score tickets to the Tony Award-winning show during its Broadway run and subsequent national tours, Hamilton’s release on Disney+ is huge. For those who have played the soundtrack to death, scouring the Internet for bootleg footage to no avail, to finally view Hamilton in all its glory is nothing short of monumental. While it may not match the same exhilarating heights of a live performance, it comes pretty close. Not to mention, the film version allows you to watch the show with subtitles, which proves to be incredibly helpful.
Originally, Hamilton was supposed to be released in theaters in October of 2021. But with coronavirus causing the shutdown of movie theaters nationwide, Disney seized the opportunity to bring the spectacle to audiences sooner through Disney+. Since a great deal of the country spent Independence Day in their own homes and backyards, Hamilton became the viewing activity of choice. Disney’s move paid off in the short run, but how long will these Ham-fans stick around? Now that Disney+ no longer offers a 7-day free trial, those who downloaded the app just for Hamilton may not keep it in the long run.
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