2023 has seen a disquieting trend from major streaming services. Shows and movies that fail to perform aren’t simply retreating into the content library, but disappearing altogether. Earlier this year Disney caused controversy when they deleted sci-fi family movie Crater from Disney Plus just one month after its release, apparently to take a financial writedown on its budget.
The ultimate fate of movies and shows like this is unclear, though fans of the Paramount Plus show Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies (pulled less than a month after its finale) can rest a little easier after being given an olive branch, with the show now available to buy on VOD services like Amazon and iTunes. A little more surprisingly, it’s also being given a DVD release on Nov. 7, which will include more than 30 minutes of special features.
This will likely please creator Annabel Oakes, who said the show’s deletion from Paramount Plus was “a particularly brutal move” as fans wouldn’t be able to watch it anywhere else.
Physical media is almost certainly never going to make a full comeback, though we’re always pleased when studios decide that shows and movies should see some kind of DVD or Blu-ray release. Anything that remains fully exclusive to streaming services has the Sword of Damocles dangling over its head, as they exist at the whims of whoever’s hosting the content on their servers.
Who knows, perhaps today’s flop will be tomorrow’s critically reappraised cult classic? Here’s hoping more streaming services and studios consider a physical release as an option if they’re hovering a finger over the big red “delete” key.