4K Disney Movie References Spotted on Apple TV

Could Apple be about to announce that it's making Disney movies available in 4K format on Apple TV? Earlier this morning, MacRumors forum member Eminemdrdre00 spotted a 4K badge on the Aladdin banner in the carousel of the iTunes Movies app on his Apple set-top box. But when he selected it, the reference disappeared.

aladdin 4k disney
However, a Reddit user has since uploaded several images of Disney movie selection screens on iTunes – including several Marvel titles – all of which bear the 4K and Dolby Atmos badges. However, these references appear to have since been pulled.

When Apple said in 2017 that it had inked deals with all the major Hollywood studios to sell 4K movies on ‌Apple TV‌ 4K, Disney was the one notable holdout.

disney 4k apple tv 2
Perhaps an agreement has now been reached, although this would be all the more surprising given that both Apple and Disney are about to go head to head with their own rival streaming services.

Disney+ is set to launch on November 12 and will be available to watch on ‌Apple TV‌ (tvOS-supported models), iPad, and iPhone, with offline downloads supported on mobile. Rumors suggest Apple is also aiming to launch ‌Apple TV‌+ this November.

disney apple tv 4k movies 1
Disney+ will cost $6.99 a month and give subscribers the ability stream up to four devices at the same time, with high-definition 4K content included at no extra cost.

‌Apple TV‌+ will offer all of Apple's original TV shows and movies that are in development, and Apple is reportedly spending upwards of $6 billion for content. Little is known about ‌Apple TV‌+, but it will be available on all devices where the TV app is available when it launches.

Apple is widely expected to announce new ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch models at its event later today, and last-minute rumors suggest there could be a new Apple TV with an A12 chip as well, although the timing is unclear.

The event kicks off at 10:00 a.m Pacific Time. MacRumors will be providing live coverage of the event both here on MacRumors.com and on the MacRumorsLive Twitter account.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

iPhone Driver's Licenses: These 17 U.S. States Offer Them or Will Later

Thursday June 19, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states and Puerto...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Monday June 16, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
ios 26 call holding

iOS 26 Beta is Hiding a New Ringtone — Here's What It Sounds Like

Thursday June 19, 2025 7:25 pm PDT by
Apple is hiding a new ringtone within iOS 26. The new ringtone is an alternative version of the existing Reflection ringtone, which has been the default ringtone since the iPhone X was released in 2017. It was discovered within the code for the first developer beta of iOS 26, but it remains hidden, so you will not find it in the list of ringtones available in the Settings app for now. It...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Wednesday June 18, 2025 10:24 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a few days after Apple provided the betas to developers. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. When the...
General Spotify Feature

Spotify Preparing to Launch Long-Awaited Lossless Audio Tier on iPhone

Thursday June 19, 2025 1:46 pm PDT by
Spotify appears to be gearing up to launch its long-awaited lossless music tier. Chris Messina (via TechCrunch) and Spicetify (via The Verge) spotted new lossless references within the code for Spotify's desktop app and web player. With assistance from Aaron Perris, MacRumors has confirmed that the latest beta of the Spotify app for the iPhone also contains new lossless-related code....
new iphone lockscreen ios 26

iOS 26: Five Changes Coming to Your iPhone Lock Screen

Tuesday June 17, 2025 8:46 am PDT by
With iOS 26, Apple has made some additions to the iPhone Lock Screen that aim to make it more customizable than ever. Of course, things can always change before the software makes its way to the general iPhone-owning public, but here are five new things iOS 26 can do on the Lock Screen as of the current developer beta. Widgets Top or Bottom In iOS 18, the row of widgets on your Lock...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Apple Says iOS 26 Won't Be Available on These iPhone Models

Tuesday June 10, 2025 6:58 am PDT by
Apple this week revealed that iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer. That means that iOS 18 is the end of the road for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, which were all released in 2018. However, those devices will continue to receive security updates for at least a few more years. iOS 26 is compatible with the following iPhone models: iPhone 16e iPhone...
Craig Federighi No

John Gruber Reacts to Apple Declining His Interview After His Criticism

Wednesday June 18, 2025 8:10 pm PDT by
Every year between 2015 and 2024, at least one Apple executive agreed to be interviewed by Daring Fireball's John Gruber for a special WWDC episode of his podcast, The Talk Show. Last year, for example, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi, marketing chief Greg Joswiak, and top AI researcher John Giannandrea joined Gruber on stage at the California Theatre in San Jose to discuss...

Top Rated Comments

truthertech Avatar
76 months ago
"Perhaps an agreement has now been reached, although this would be all the more surprising given that both Apple and Disney are about to go head to head with their own rival streaming services."

You misunderstand the nature of their relationship, and what Apple is trying to accomplish with their streaming service. Apple and Disney aren't "going head to head." Disney's CEO, Bob Iger, sits on Apple's Board of Directors and intimately understands Apple. Cook and Iger see their businesses as complementary. That's why, unlike Netflix, Disney agreed to have a channel on Apple TV and give Apple a cut. Indeed, don't be surprised if Apple announces a bundle with Disney today.;)

Moreover, you're making the mistake people make over and over that in order for Apple to succeed, others must fail. When Jobs came back to Apple he shared his epiphany that Apple had to realize that it wasn't necessary for Microsoft to fail for Apple to succeed. Not understanding this is why so many pundits are consistently wrong in their predictions. They think that Apple has to be #1 in sales of a product to be successful, e.g., sale of phones, most music subscribers, most smart speakers sold, etc., when that's never Apple's goal. No, Apple TV Plus is all about adding value and hence some revenue to the Apple ecosystem, not being the most watched or beating Disney, etc.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Khedron Avatar
76 months ago
Disney has been dragging it's heels on this, wanting to charge users 25$ for 4k movies but Apple wouldn't allow a price go above 19.99. Every company has been selling 4k for 19.99 and Disney was being greedy.
Disney also wanted to build in VHS Playback Simulation whereby the quality of the movie would decrease every time it was watched so that parents of children would need to pay for multiple copies
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cardfan Avatar
76 months ago
Why would you be surprised? Again Apple isn’t going into battle with Disney. Apple thinks of Disney+ as a channel to sell in its atv app. Apple stands to make 2 dollars from every Disney sub it sells.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BMox81 Avatar
76 months ago
Will Disney upgrade all of our movies for free is the question? I bought so many marvel movies I’ll be pissed if I have to rebuy everything
I'd say it will be a free upgrade or nothing at all. But given that Apple gives you 4K rights to a 4K code that was redeemed in MA, they should technically know the Disney films in your collection that were redeemed in 4K in MA as well, therefore the potential to give you 4K to those films is there....
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jose86ec Avatar
76 months ago
Now it makes sense why some of the Disney films are available today in 4K.

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/releasedates.php?year=2019&month=9#September10
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BMox81 Avatar
76 months ago
Odd move to make their competitors products better as they are launching their own streaming platform.
Or Disney know that there will be some who would prefer to buy their films from an iTunes or Vudu over subscribing to their digital service so have now decided to fall in line with Apple's pricing so that every digital provider has their films available to buy in 4K.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)