Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has finally flown into theaters. And, while movies of this size and scale are made to be seen on the biggest screen possible, there are some Marvel fans who'll wait for it to make its streaming debut before watching it.
So, when will Guardians of the Galaxy 3 make the space jump to Disney Plus? The short answer is: we don't know. But, if we had to hazard a guess, we suspect it'll be around July or August 2023.
Why do we think Marvel's latest film will debut around that time? Our prediction is based on hard science and various other factors... okay, we jest. It's more to do with when other recent Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movies have joined Disney Plus' back catalog – and you can find out which ones have made it onto our best Disney Plus movies list. And, perhaps more importantly, when the first Marvel Phase 5 film (that being Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) was released on the platform.
When will Guardians 3 be released on Disney Plus?
As we mentioned up top, Guardians 3 doesn't have a confirmed Disney Plus release date yet. It only launched in theaters on May 3 in select territories, such as the UK and certain parts of Europe, before getting its global rollout on May 5.
After a few box office duds – Ant-Man 3 and Thor: Love and Thunder, we're primarily looking at you – over the past 12 months, Marvel needs a big theatrical win. Luckily for the studio, Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is going to save the MCU (metaphorically speaking, of course). Judging by its critical reception, plus the opinions of MCU fans who have seen it already, the Guardians' latest cinematic adventure sounds like it'll be one of the best new movies of 2023, too.
Variety and Deadline suggest Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will earn between $110 million and $120 million during its opening weekend in the US. More widely, the superhero flick is projected to make $250 million globally – a tidy sum that'll calm the nerves of Marvel Studios' chief executive team.
How does all of this relate to its forthcoming Disney Plus release? Well, if Guardians 3 dominates the box office for weeks on end – and it appears it'll have the legs to do so – Marvel won't be in a rush to remove it from theaters and release it on Disney's main streaming service. Why release it for free on Disney Plus if it continues to make cash in cinemas across the globe?
Guardians of the Galaxy 3 on Disney Plus: our prediction
So, with all of that said, when could Guardians of the Galaxy 3 descend on Disney Plus? As we stated earlier, we think it'll be July or August – more specifically, late July or early August – before it does so.
Marvel films used to have a 45-day exclusivity period in theaters before they dropped on Disney's main streamer. However, the last two MCU movies – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Ant-Man 3 – didn't debut on the platform until three months after their theatrical debuts. If this three-month period is the new time frame between a Marvel movie launching in theaters and its arrival on Disney Plus, that would mean Guardians 3 wouldn't land on one of the world's best streaming services until early August.
The only thing that might change that is the writers' strike, which is (at the time of writing) dominating the entertainment industry news cycle. In short: members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) are striking over pay and job security issues, meaning no new TV shows or movies are being written for any TV networks or streaming platforms. You can read more about what's going on in our article about Netflix users cancelling their subscriptions amid the growing writers' strike feud.
With MCU TV shows including Secret Invasion and Loki season 2 ready for release, Marvel won't be immediately impacted by the strike action. However, if Disney and its subsidiaries (including Marvel Studios) start to run out of new content for Disney's streaming services, including Disney Plus and Hulu, they could decide to release Guardians of the Galaxy 3 earlier than expected. That might mean the latest entry in our best Marvel movies guide releases in late July, rather than August.
Once we learn of an official release date, we'll update this article. For now, expect the Guardians' (potentially) final movie to make its streaming bow in around three months' time.
For more MCU-based coverage, find out how to watch the Marvel movies in order or see which Marvel films made it onto our best superhero movies list. And, if you're looking to binge every MCU film that the Guardians star in before seeing their latest flick in theaters, read our guide on which Marvel movies to watch before you see Guardians 3.
