Katy Barnes

Due to the COVID-19 crisis, many theaters have had to temporarily close their doors, causing many companies to find alternative methods for releasing their products. Movie studios have begun releasing their films straight to streaming websites, such as Amazon Prime or Disney +, and while the studios have found success, it has not been without controversy.  One of the first films to attempt this new style of distribution was “Trolls: World Tour,” the long-awaited sequel to 2016’s “Trolls.” It was initially projected to release on April 10, 2020, but due to the temporary closure of movie theaters, Universal instead made the decision to release in both theaters and various streaming platforms on the same day.  “Trolls: World Tour” was not the first film to have a pre-mature release onto streaming websites in the early 2020 season. Warner Brother’s “Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn),” Disney’s “Onward” and Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” all were released to various streaming sites due to COVID-19, but they all enjoyed a theatrical release before making the jump. The simultaneous release of “Trolls: World Tour” has been a controversial decision, and not one that theaters are taking lightly.  On April 28, AMC declared that they would no longer show Universal Studio’s films in their theaters. On April 29, Cineworld released a statement that they would begin to pull films that failed to respect the theatrical window of...