Disney+ Doubles Down on Young Adults as ‘Rivals’ and ‘Zootopia 2’ Power a UK Surge
Disney+ EMEA boss Karl Holmes says the streamer has become the platform of choice for young adults in the UK, citing data that nearly 40% of viewing hours come from 16–34 year-olds — ahead of Netflix, Prime Video, and Paramount+. Hits like ‘Rivals’ and the billion-hour run of ‘Zootopia 2’ are driving the momentum, alongside a promised wave of local Originals.
Disney+ has quietly become the streaming home of choice for young adults in the UK — and the platform’s EMEA boss has the data to back it up. According to figures shared by Karl Holmes, nearly 40% of Disney+ viewing hours in the UK come from 16–34 year-olds, putting the service ahead of Netflix, Prime Video, and Paramount+ with that audience.
Key Details
- Who: Karl Holmes, Disney+ EMEA boss, speaking at the Enders TMT Leaders Live Conference
- The Stat: ~40% of UK Disney+ viewing hours come from 16–34s (vs. Netflix 32%, Prime Video 27%, Paramount+ 23%), per ratings agency Barb
- Driving It: UK original “Rivals” and the billion-hour run of “Zootopia 2”
- Coming Up: More local Originals, plus “Alice & Steve” and an Oasis documentary
The Buzz
This story is making the rounds after Deadline reported Holmes’ remarks from the Enders Conference, where the executive made a pointed case for Disney+ as a young-adult destination rather than a kids-and-families default — a framing that has fans and the industry talking.
‘Disney+ Now Appeals to Adults as Much as Kids’
“Disney+ now appeals to adults as much as kids,” Holmes told the conference, “but it’s important to stress that our grown-up audience is emphatically young. The young adult audience is one we know and understand well, and has an incredibly strong affinity for the franchises and content at the heart of Disney+.” The data point he leaned on — from UK ratings agency Barb — reframes a service often pigeonholed as family-first.
‘Rivals’ Leads a Local Originals Push
Holmes pointed to Rivals, the streamer’s biggest UK original, as proof of concept — noting that Rivals Season 2, dropping its latest batch of episodes imminently, is “already bigger than the first.” Looking ahead, the slate includes the Jemaine Clement-starring Alice & Steve and an Oasis documentary. He also reiterated commitments from new international content boss Angela Jain that Disney+ will spend more on local originals across both scripted and unscripted programming. “Starting now, Disney+ customers will start to see a greater frequency of shows from their home market,” he said.
When Box Office Becomes Streaming Gold
Holmes also drew a straight line from theatrical success to streaming performance. The “extraordinary success” of Zootopia 2 (released as Zootropolis 2 in the UK) helped push the franchise past one billion hours viewed on Disney+. Even catalog titles pull weight: Home Alone landed 250,000 views in EMEA last Christmas. “Not bad for a movie that’s 35 years old,” he added.
What This Means for Fans
For Disney fans, the takeaway is encouraging: a Disney+ that sees young adults as a core audience is a Disney+ more likely to greenlight mature, regionally specific originals rather than leaning solely on the family tentpoles. If the promised wave of local Originals materializes the way Rivals did, the service’s next few years could look very different from its launch-era reputation.