12 Mar Movie Theaters, Rejoice! Universal Extends Theatrical Window to Five Weekends in 2026, Seven Weekends Starting in 2027 [Variety]
By Rebecca Rubin
March 12, 2026| In a shocking reversal in strategy, Universal Pictures is lengthening the time that its movies will play exclusively in theaters.
It’s a major change from the pandemic era when Universal was aggressive in brokering deals that shortened the theatrical window to roughly 17 days, or three weekends. Now the studio is committing to longer runs, promising a minimum of five weekends in 2026 and seven weekends in 2027 before a film moves to home entertainment.
It’s a huge win for movie theater owners, who have long argued that audiences wouldn’t pay to see movies on the big screen if they could wait a few weeks to watch them at home. Way back when, 90-day windows were the norm but the industry average has settled on roughly 45 days since the great COVID box office reset. This kind of commitment is especially meaningful to the nation’s cinema operators as ticket sales lag around 20% behind pre-pandemic years.
Read more on Variety.