Are we going to see Marvel regain the rights to Fantastic Four and X-Men alongside the original Star Wars trilogy? The idea is exciting, but, hold your horses. As per latest reports, Disney, one of the mightiest names in the Entertainment industry has undergone talks to explore the possibility of buying a major share of 21st Century Fox. Although the deal is not on the table right now and the details are a bit murky, the chances are that Disney might be making a grand acquisition in the time to come. At the moment, everything is status quo. The talks have died down. However, the discussions can restart, and if that happens, then it would alter the entertainment industry in a major way as Disney would get hold of a major movie studio alongside getting a much larger footprint in the TV world.
This can imply a lot of things, however, the key is to know what Disney won’t buy. As per the early report, Disney won’t buy out the Fox broadcasting network, and they won’t acquire Fox’s sports programming division either as Disney already has ESPN. If we assume that the sale happens then, Fox would restrict its focus to the sports and news and would reorganize their business model. What about Disney? They will acquire FX, National Geographic and a lot more. However, the most important would be the 20th Century Fox which would let Disney own the video rights to the original Star Wars films.
Disney’s buying of a major portion of 21st Century Fox would bring in a lot of changes. However, the film business will inarguably the most highlighted part of the sale. The 20th Century Fox is a major competitor to Disney, and it would clear the table. They also own the rights to X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises, apart from the rights to Star Wars which presently hang in the balance. Therefore, if the takeover happens then Marvel fans are likely to see X-Men crossover with MCU. The thing is that the Marvel Studios would own a significant majority of their characters once again.
Before you get really excited, it has to be noted that the talks are dead presently. As per the report, Disney and Fox discussed time, and again, therefore, the revival of talks is expected, but, things are not moving right now. The other thing is the size of this deal so it would take a good bit of time to figure out. Therefore, even if both studios agree, it could be months if not years before the acquisition comes into effect. It must also be noted that the Fox stocks went up as soon as the initial report came out.
We should also take note of the Disney announcement about the launch of their own streaming service in 2018. They are taking off their titles from Netflix and will enter the streaming business with their huge stock of sought-after titles including Star Wars and Marvel. If they buy Fox, then it would land even more content for the streaming service, and it might help Disney become a leader in that domain as well.
The impact of Disney’s purchase of 21st Century Fox is going to be huge. Disney is a massive Hollywood force, and if they buy another major rival, then it would nearly give them an unfair advantage over the competition. As reported by CNBC, no dollar figure has been calculated. Therefore, we don’t know what a crazy payout Disney would have to make to take over their rival. Undoubtedly, it is going to be a mind-boggling amount. Fox and Disney are not officially commenting about it, but, we are going to keep you updated as soon as new information comes out. The news even quotes Ryan Reynolds wondering about the future of Deadpool.
