Talking About the Disney/21st Century Fox Deal: If The Walt Disney Company acquires Fox, will Disney own the TV rights to Batman?
If The Walt Disney Company acquires Fox, will Disney own the TV rights to Batman? The purchase of 21st Century Fox by The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) was finalized in the spring of 2019 after the relevant government agencies in various nations, including the U.S. and China, signed off on it. It’s therefore no longer a hypothetical question (“if”); it’s a done deal. However, your question from 2017 reflects quite a few misconceptions that need to be cleared up. Let’s begin, shall we? First, you have to understand that before the Disney purchase of 21st Century Fox was set in motion, Rupert Murdoch and his fellow owners had to spin off several divisions from the company that was the parent of the legendary film studio 20th Century Fox and its in-house labels, Fox Searchlight and Fox 2000. None of the “Fox”-branded TV networks that were formerly part of Murdoch’s old News Corporation/21st Century Fox were included in the deal. TWDC already owns ABC and ESPN; it can’t own a...