Disney CFO Compares Netflix's Approach To THE DEFENDERS To Marvel Studios' THE AVENGERS
Talking at the 41st Annual UBS Global Media and Communications Conference, Disney CFO Jay Rasulo has talked briefly about the decision to team with Netflix for The Defenders as well as reflecting on the acquisitions of both Marvel and Lucasfilm. Do they have anyone else in their sights?
"We don't have anything on the scale of Marvel or Lucasfilm right now," Disney's Chief Financial Officer Jay Rasulo said during his appearance at the 41st Annual UBS Global Media and Communications Conference earlier today. "I don't feel there is anything we need...you will continue to see us do acquisitions in the future." There have been various rumours over the past year or so about who might join Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm under the Disney umbrella, with Hasbro at one point mentioned as a legitimate contender, but it's clear that they're quite content with what they have (for now at least). Apparently, the CFO then went on to sat that the Star Wars franchise will be "a key driver of Disney's studio performance" moving forwards, and that we should expect to see "much more in terms of Star Wars consumer products on offer around that release."
As for the recent decision to create four individual Marvel series for Netflix (Daredevil, Iron Fist, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage), later combining them into The Defenders, Rasalo said the decision to not use a traditional TV network stemmed from a desire to simply look outside for distribution. "It's a little bit like the Avengers strategy, he added. "I'm not sure I would call [Netflix] our go-to SVOD partner. We try to be even-handed and, of course, advantageous to Disney. We are out there playing the field." That's a reference to the fact that Netflix wasn't the only place they pitched their plans for the four superheroes listed above, so there's nothing to say we won't see Marvel's influence grow even wider than Disney XD, ABC and Netflix when it comes to TV!