Disney+ is now expanding its watch party feature to the US. Disney first tested the feature with subscribers in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand earlier this month, allowing them to stream movies and TV episodes from the Disney+ library with groups of up to seven people.
“Storytelling comes alive when you’re able to share and enjoy it with others, and in this moment when many are still apart from their friends and family, GroupWatch offers a way to safely connect virtually by co-viewing your favorite Disney+ stories with your favorite people from the comfort of your living room,” Jerrell B Jimerson, SVP Product Management for Disney+, said in a press release.
GroupWatch will be available on desktop, mobile, streaming devices, and smart TVs. Hosts of a watch party will need to create the link to join from a computer or on mobile. While watching together, participants can use six emojis to express themselves, though no chat feature has been added yet.
The feature is not available for Kids accounts. All members of a GroupWatch party can pause or rewind the show or movie while the group is watching.
To Use the GroupWatch Feature:
- Look for the GroupWatch icon found on the Details page of series and movies (shown in the image above)
- You’ll be given a link to invite up to six other people to watch. If you invite someone without a Disney+ subscription, they’ll be taken to a page to sign up for an account first.
- After joining the watch party, each person will be able to play, rewind, pause, or fast-forward.