Did YRF decide for Alpha's OTT release after Mardaani 3's underperformance?

Due to anticipated underperformance of several of its franchise films, the fate of Yash Raj Films' (YRF) spy universe has come into question. There is speculation that Alia Bhatt's new spy film Alpha will release only on OTT platforms. Apparently, poor box office performance of the recent franchise entries War 2 and Mardaani 3 is causing Aditya Chopra to think about Alpha’s OTT release.

OTT rumours vs YRF’s theatrical push

Media reports state that Alpha is put on hold because Mardaani 3 could not rebuild faith in women-led action films. It was believed by Aditya Chopra that the Mardaani series would give rise to a resurgence in the female-centric genre and enable Alpha to become the large 'shero' film for Alia Bhatt. However, the performances of Mardaani 3 and War 2 made YRF re-evaluate those plans.

The report also mentioned that Alpha had been put on hold. Alia Bhatt is said to have protested against this move. This has triggered a lot of speculation on the internet regarding the future of YRF’s giant spy universe. Much less than a day after the initial reports, another source debunked Alpha’s OTT release rumours. According to insiders, Alpha is a movie designed for the big screen experience and will exclusively release in theatres.

A YRF spokesperson addressed Alpha’s OTT release and said, “The last schedule is currently in progress with Alia, Sharvari, Anil and Bobby at YRF Studios. The schedule will be wrapped up by next week, and makers are fully geared up for a theatrical release. Alpha is an extremely special film for us, and we want to present the film in its most cinematic self. We have realised that the VFX will take a little longer than we had initially assumed. We want to leave no stone unturned to make Alpha into a theatrical experience for everyone to cherish. Thus, we will now release the film on April 17, 2026.”

After the end of filming, now the production is focusing to finalising the post-production processes, which will entail a lot of visual effects. It was originally scheduled to be released in December 2025. However, It is now set to be released on April 17, 2026.

Even after clarification, a lot of comments regarding Alpha’s OTT release is resurfacing on the internet. One person said, “Youtube pe daal do na!” And another user commented, “The real reason is Dhurandhar exposed the s**t quality of YRF's spy universe and if Alpha gets a big release, it will be trolled even more than the OTT release.” Another user said “If YRF can release a mega Disaster movie like The great Indian family which earned only 5cr in lifetime I am sure they will release Alpha too on theatres.”

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