Corus to bow Disney Junior and Disney XD channels

Corus Entertainment is bolstering its kids content offerings with the arrivals of Disney Junior and Disney XD on December 1, making Corus the official home of all Disney networks in Canada.
November 9, 2015

Canada’s Corus Entertainment is bolstering its kids content offerings with the arrivals of Disney Junior and Disney XD. Both popular children’s channels will be made available across English-speaking Canada starting December 1.

The rollout of the channels makes Corus Entertainment the official home all of Disney networks in Canada, following a licensing deal signed in April.

Launch week for Disney Junior, which targets kids two to seven, will feature the network premiere of one-hour film The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar (pictured). The original animated movie picks up where iconic film The Lion King left off. It revolves around the second-born cub of Simba and Nala named Kion, who becomes leader of the Lion Guard and puts together an all-star team to help him protect the Pridelands. In addition, new series The Lion Guard, is set to debut on Disney Junior in 2016.

New series Goldie & Bear is also slated to make its network debut on the specialty kids channel. The animated series follows the adventures of Goldie and Bear following the famous porridge incident from the classic tale of Goldilocks and The Three Bears.

Disney Junior’s library also includes both contemporary and classic series such as Doc McStuffins, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Miles from Tomorrowland and Sofia the First, and the channel will air new episodes from each series, as well as holiday programming, throughout December.

Targeting older kids six to 11, live-action channel Disney XD also launches on Corus Entertainment in the first week of December across English-speaking Canada, featuring a Star Wars Rebels season two marathon, followed by an exclusive premiere episode of Wings of the Master.

In addition to animated series such as Star Wars Rebels, Gravity Falls and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Disney XD will also offer previous and new episodes of Lab RatsKirby Buckets and Gamer’s Guide to Pretty Much Everything.

Disney XD programming currently airs on Corus’s Disney Channel Canada and will continue as scheduled until November 29. On December 1, programming will move exclusively to Disney XD. Holiday programming details will also be announced in the coming weeks.

Corus Entertainment, which reported a 4% drop in Q4 revenues in late October, also operates leading Canadian kids channels such as Cartoon Network Canada, Nickelodeon Canada, Teletoon, Treehouse, YTV, and French-language channels La chaîne Disney and Télétoon.

 

 

 

 

About The Author
Patrick Callan is a senior writer at Kidscreen. He reports on the licensing and consumer products side of the global children's entertainment industry via daily news coverage and in-depth features. Contact Patrick at pcallan@brunico.com.

Search

Menu

Brand Menu