Disney's Fox Deal - 10 Properties That Will Be Selling Points For Disney+

Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox was finally completed earlier this week, with $71.2 billion agreed as the final price after all of the regulatory approvals and divestment requirements went through.

The headlines have predominantly focused on how this will finally give Disney the film rights to all of Marvel Comics’ characters, allowing the likes of the X-Men, Deadpool, the Fantastic Four and Namor to be incorporated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which will inevitably need some fresh blood after the upcoming events of Avengers: Endgame, the 22nd film in the series.

The deal has also given Disney access to a wealth of other properties, which together with the aforementioned MCU and their existing collections of Animated Classics, Star Wars films and Muppets properties will give their forthcoming Disney+ streaming platform a far-reaching appeal, instantly allowing them to compete with the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime in terms of content volume.

It has also given them the majority stake in the Hulu platform. It remains to be seen whether this will eventually be incorporated into Disney+ or whether it will continue to exist as a standalone channel (perhaps the company will want to separate their family friendly and mature content). Whichever route they take, the following properties will be sure to give them a massive boost in a competitive and saturated market.

Disney are traditionally associated with huge blockbuster releases, but like all studios they have also made numerous forays into the world of independent films. They purchased Miramax, the company founded by the now disgraced Weinstein brothers, in 1993, distributing films such as Pulp Fiction, Trainspotting, Kevin Smith’s View Askewniverse and Gangs Of New York before selling it in 2010 (and avoiding any awkward association with the brothers thereafter), leaving them without a separate independent studio arm.

This has now changed with the acquisition of Fox Searchlight, which has been distributing independent and non-American films since 1995. Notable successes have included four winners of the Academy Award For Best Picture – Slumdog Millionaire, Birdman, 12 Years A Slave and The Shape As Water, as well as quirky comedies such as (500) Days Of Summer, Juno and The Grand Budapest Hotel and hard-hitting dramas such as The Wrestler, The Last King Of Scotland and 28 Days Later.

All of these and more are now at Disney’s disposal, allowing them to supplement their predominantly family friendly offerings with more mature films covering a wide array of genres and target audiences.

Whilst continuing to maintain the rights to classics such as the aforementioned Miramax films could’ve boosted the appeal of Disney+ further, the absorption of Fox Searchlight is a hugely understated aspect of their purchase given the depth and quality of their back catalogue.