The Walt Disney Company plans to integrate Hulu’s content and features into Disney+ and eventually shut down the standalone Hulu app [1, 2, 3].

This move represents a significant shift in Disney's streaming strategy as it seeks to unify its portfolio into a single "superapp" experience. By consolidating its libraries, the company aims to simplify the user interface and reduce the overhead of maintaining multiple separate platforms [1, 2].

According to leaked internal files, Disney intends to migrate Hulu’s entire catalog, user profiles, watch history, Live TV, and DVR features into the Disney+ interface [1, 3]. The transition is scheduled to take place during 2026, with the standalone app being phased out once the integration is complete [2, 3]. These changes will initially roll out across Disney+ markets in the U.S. and Canada [1, 4].

There is currently a contradiction regarding the final fate of the Hulu app. An internal Disney document said, "The app will be decommissioned after subscribers move to Disney+" [2]. However, a Disney spokesperson said to Variety that there are "no current plans to phase out the Hulu app" [2].

This consolidation follows a period of heavy investment in the service. Disney spent $8.5 billion to acquire full ownership of Hulu [4]. The company is now leveraging Disney+ as the primary platform to host that library [1, 2].

Industry reports indicate that Disney+ and Hulu already live together in one app for some users [4]. The full transition would move all remaining functionality, including the complex Live TV infrastructure, into the primary Disney+ ecosystem [1, 3].

“The app will be decommissioned after subscribers move to Disney+.”

The transition to a single-app ecosystem reflects a broader industry trend toward 'bundling' to combat subscription fatigue. By absorbing Hulu into Disney+, the company can increase user retention and streamline data collection across its most popular titles, though the conflicting statements from Disney suggest the exact timeline for the Hulu app's shutdown remains fluid.