Universal’s exclusive runs rise to seven weekends in 2027 as sources differ on averages

A theatrical window is the period when a film plays only in cinemas before it becomes available in other formats. Studios set these periods through their own release policies and through agreements with theater chains. In 2026 the length of the window has been a central point of debate between cinema owners, who want longer runs, and studios, some of which have changed their own policies.

There is no single answer to how long a window lasts. The period is counted in days or weekends, each later format has its own timing, and sources publishing averages for the same year do not always agree. A June 2026 summary of Omdia research by Celluloid Junkie reports that post-pandemic compression appears to be easing, especially for big releases, while windowing remains title by title and platform by platform.

The order of formats after the cinema run

After the exclusive run, a film moves through a sequence of paid formats. Omdia groups the first paid digital release into transactional video on demand, or TVOD, which covers both premium rentals and digital purchases. Advanced Television’s 2020 coverage uses premium video on demand, or PVOD, for the paid release under the Universal–AMC deal, which included AMC Theatres On Demand.

Subscription streaming, or SVOD, comes later. Omdia puts the average SVOD window at 95 days for 2025, a provisional figure that could change as more dates become known. That is down from 98 days in 2024.

Omdia says the SVOD window likely carries the greater risk of drawing viewers away from cinemas, and that major titles typically reach SVOD near or beyond three months after release. It has not recently studied how PVOD affects individual box office runs. Celluloid Junkie also reports Omdia consumer research in which 95% of surveyed U.S. cinema-goers use SVOD.

The 2025 average window
Cinema United’s CEO put the average theatrical window for 2025’s top 100 films at 37 days, three days longer than the year before, according to Boxoffice Pro.

Universal’s move to five and then seven weekends

Boxoffice Pro reported on March 12, 2026, citing a New York Times report, that Universal has lengthened the guaranteed run for its mainline releases. The exclusive run at Universal rises from a five-weekend minimum to seven weekends from 2027. For the rest of its 2026 releases, the studio guarantees a minimum of five weekends of theatrical exclusivity.

Focus Features, Universal’s specialty label, is excluded. It keeps its current approach, which the article describes as about 17 days before home video. According to Boxoffice Pro’s summary, NBCUniversal Entertainment chairwoman Donna Langley said the company gives theatrical exclusivity primacy.

The article gives no day count for the seven-weekend minimum. A simple count of seven weekends spans 49 days, but that conversion is arithmetic, not a figure stated in the source. It also gives no premium VOD or home-release date for the mainline films under the new policy.

Boxoffice Pro’s background covers recent Universal windows. Five Nights at Freddy’s opened in 2023 in theaters and on Peacock at the same time, earning $80M in its opening weekend, and its second-weekend box office fell 76%. In 2025, Jurassic World: Rebirth and How to Train Your Dragon each had five weekends before home video, and Wicked: For Good had six.

The 2020 Universal–AMC agreement

The earlier framework for Universal’s releases dates from July 2020, when Advanced Television reported a multi-year agreement for Universal films to play in AMC’s US theaters. Universal and Focus Features films would receive at least three weekends, or 17 days, of exclusive run before the studio could offer them on premium VOD, including through AMC Theatres On Demand. The article describes that window as shorter than Hollywood has traditionally used.

The agreement left Universal’s electronic sell-through and standard VOD windows unchanged. Advanced Television does not state the deal’s length and says its financial terms were confidential. AMC CEO Adam Aron said AMC would share in PVOD revenue under the new structure.

No source reviewed for this article confirms whether the 2020 terms are still in force. The 2026 coverage refers to the 2020 release of Trolls: World Tour, which Boxoffice Pro describes as released at the same time in theaters and on PVOD during the pandemic, drawing exhibitor criticism. That coverage does not describe the deal’s current status.

The exclusive run at Universal rises from a five-weekend minimum to seven weekends from 2027.

What the averages show, and where sources differ

Cinema United, the exhibitor trade group, reported at CinemaCon 2026 that the average theatrical window for the top 100 films of 2025 was 37 days. Its CEO said that was three days longer than the year before, which implies about 34 days for 2024. He also said that if each of those films had a minimum 45-day window, the average would have been 49 days.

Omdia counts a different set of films. It reports an average first TVOD window of 39 days for wide releases in 2025, up from 36 in 2024, and describes that figure as provisional. For the top 10 North American films, it puts the average at 51 days before first TVOD, up from 45 in 2024. Seven of those 10 titles had more than 100 days between theatrical release and SVOD debut, up from six in 2024.

Omdia also counted 22 studio releases that reached TVOD after 45 days or more in 2025, up from 18 in 2024. Of the 17 studio titles that opened above $50 million in North America, fewer than half had a 45-day window. Omdia says bigger openings do not automatically mean longer exclusivity, and that studio strategy, title performance and distributor priorities matter.

Cinema United’s figure covers the top 100 films, while Omdia’s covers wide releases and a top 10 subset. The two averages measure different films and should not be read as the same figure.

How individual studios’ windows compare

Omdia’s 2025 figures show Disney averaging 61.6 days before first TVOD, the longest among the majors it tracked and roughly matching its 61-day average in 2024. Avatar: Fire and Ash had the longest first TVOD window for a major studio title, at 102 days. Amazon MGM’s Project Hail Mary ran about 53 days before TVOD, longer than that studio’s historical norm.

Amazon MGM distribution chief Kevin Wilson focused less on a set number of days and more on avoiding pulling a title from many theaters too early, according to Celluloid Junkie. Omdia’s early 2026 partial data show that the top five films with available data all had at least 45 days before first TVOD.

Paramount chief David Ellison has pledged a minimum 45-day theatrical window for releases. Boxoffice Pro’s March 2026 report says Paramount is acquiring Warner Bros. and promised a 45-day minimum for combined titles, with its most successful films aiming for 60 to 90 days. Universal, Sony and Steven Spielberg were cited in Omdia’s presentation as emphasizing theatrical exclusivity, but no specific day counts are attributed to them. Cinema United’s Michael O’Leary called for a minimum of 45 days, and ideally more.

Photo: DimiTalen · CC0 · via Wikimedia Commons