Disney is reportedly ending its physical media releases in Australia – and we're pretty sad about it.
According to 7news, the studio's final DVD release delivered to Australian (and New Zealand) stockists will be Guardians of the Galaxy 3 this August, as the company departs the Australian physical media market entirely. The move is said to be down to falling physical sales as streaming increases in popularity.
You'll still be able to bag Disney DVDs and Blu-rays from retailers while their stocks last, but once they're all sold out, you won't be able to purchase them again in Australia, the outlet reports.
The reported news is sad on multiple levels, and we're hoping this isn't the start of a global trend. For one thing, there's nothing better than a shelf stacked with steel books – and for another, preserving physical media seems more important than ever amid the streaming age.
Disney itself has deleted swathes of content from Disney Plus recently, including a film starring Mckenna Grace that lasted just seven weeks on the platform. Willow, the TV show sequel to the film of the same name, was also removed, though creator Jon Kasdan saw the bright side.
"I've been quiet on this news that Willow is leaving 'cause... I'm kinda into it," he commented. "I grew up at a time when movies were periodically re-released and not available to own, and it made them... more special."
Disney isn't the only company to be removing its releases from streaming, either, with Warner Bros. also taking plenty down from Max. The studio made headlines when it infamously cancelled Max original Batgirl, despite the fact that the movie had already finished filming.
It remains to be seen if we're looking at the end of physical media, but we're crossing our fingers that this isn't the case.
You can catch up on everything the House of Mouse has on the way with our guide to all the upcoming Disney movies.
