Disney+ Star: What Is It and Where Is It Available?

Disney+ is undergoing its largest change since launch with the introduction of Star. It doubles the amount of content, but is only available in some regions and comes with a price increase.

Here's everything you need to know about Disney+ Star and what it'll mean for the streaming platform and your bills.

What Is Disney+ Star?

As we reported in December 2020, Star is a new brand coming to Disney+. It's an international solution to the US-based Hulu. Much of the content that is available on Hulu in the US will be coming to Disney+ under the Star brand worldwide.

Until now, Disney+ has hosted mostly family-friendly content. That changes with Star, which contains movies and TV shows that are targeted specifically at adults.

Star will be accessible from a dedicated tile on Disney+, alongside existing brand tiles like National Geographic and Pixar. The content will also surface through usual methods like the home screen's rows and search.

Where and When Does Disney+ Star Release?

Star will be available on Disney+ from February 23, 2021 in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, and Western Europe.

It will become available in Eastern Europe, Hong Kong, Japan, and South Korea at a later and unspecified date.

When Disney+ launches in more territories in the future, Star will come as standard.

The only place that won't get Star is the US. That's because Hulu provides much of the same content.

What Will Be Available on Disney+ Star?

Star brings together content from brands like ABC, 20th Century Studios, and Searchlight Pictures. A full list of everything that will be available can be seen on the Disney+ Star content list [PDF].

This includes originals like Big Sky and Love, Victor, along with TV series like Atlanta, Castle, and How I Met Your Mother. There's also movies like Braveheart, The French Connection, and Pretty Woman.

How Much Will Disney+ Star Cost?

Strictly speaking, Star doesn't cost anything. If you have a Disney+ subscription, Star comes as default—just like brands like Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel.

That said, when Star launches on February 23, the monthly and annual cost for Disney+ is increasing.

For example, in the UK, the monthly cost is rising from £5.99 to £7.99, and the annual cost is rising from £59.99 to £79.90. In Australia, the monthly cost is rising from $8.99 to $11.99 and the annual cost is rising from $89.99 to $119.99.

Disney+ is getting slightly more expensive in the US, despite not receiving the Star brand.

In Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, current prices for existing subscribers will be honored until August 23, 2021.

As such, if you want to lock the cheaper price in for Disney+ for the longest period possible, you should sign up for an annual subscription before February 23.

Related: Is Disney+ Worth Getting?

Disney+ Star Introduces New Parental Controls

Since Star brings more adult content to Disney+, new parental controls are being introduced.

When you log in to Disney+ from February 23, you'll be guided through the setup process to set an age gate for every profile on your account. If you don't have kids, you can set it to 18+ to access everything that Disney+ and Star has to offer.

You can also set an optional four-digit PIN for each profile, which provides an extra layer of protection and ensures that no-one can access a profile with a different age rating.

Does Star Make Disney+ More Competitive?

One of the criticisms levied against Disney+ is that its content is primarily targeted at younger people, especially when compared against competitors like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

The introduction of Star changes that, making Disney+ a solid streaming service for all age groups.

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