Everything You Need To Know About The Disney/Fox Deal And How It Will Change The MCU Forever
Big changes could be coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Disney is in talks with 21st Century Fox for a deal which would bring the Fantastic Four and X-Men into the same world as The Avengers...
Last night, we heard that Disney and 21st Century Fox have been in discussions which would see the former acquire the movie studio and other assets currently owned by Fox. It would be a sale even bigger than when they bought Marvel Entertainment and Lucasfilm and one which most importantly for comic book fans brings the Fantastic Four and X-Men into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
You don't need us to tell you why that's exciting but what exactly would such a deal mean for both companies and the characters that do - and don't currently - inhabit the Disney owned MCU?
Below, you'll find everything we know so far about this potential deal as well as an in-depth look at how heroes like Wolverine and The Thing could end up standing alongside the likes of Captain America and Spider-Man. If this all pans out, expect to see the Marvel Cinematic Universe changed forever.
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The Specifics Of The Deal And What It Means For Disney/Fox
21st Century Fox is struggling, hence why the company is looking to see off most of its assets to Disney in order to focus mainly on news and sports. Experts believe Fox simply doesn't have what it takes to compete in today's market and Disney has a lot to gain from buying this rival firm; for example, ESPN's declining subscriber count means the acquisition of a cable network like FX would be a real win.
Disney has moved away from Netflix in a bid to launch its own online streaming service and adding the likes of Avatar, the Planet of the Apes, and Ice Age franchises to that would be huge. Those would all fit into their theme parks and stores as well and acquiring Fox means the studio can also start appealing to older moviegoers. Bear in mind that Fox is responsible for Academy Award favourites like The Revenant, The Martian and Birdman.
Throw Marvel properties like the Fantastic Four and X-Men into the mix and the movie side of things alone would be massively profitable as would the stake Disney would receive in Sky and Hulu.
The End Of R-Rated Marvel Movies?
If Disney does end up owning Fox, we can probably expect to see the R-Rated Deadpool and X-Force franchises come to a crashing halt. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has shot down the idea of making any R-Rated superhero movies and while Deadpool was a huge success, Ryan Reynolds would probably have one of two choices: step down from the role or bring the Merc with the Mouth into a PG-13 setting.
The latter option could work but it may ultimately hurt the character and would potentially bring Fox's X-Force plans to a premature end. It would be a shame to see that happen and while Disney has made and will probably continue making adult orientated releases, you have to believe that they would rather see their superheroes marketed to everyone, especially as characters like Wolverine and Deadpool would fit into their theme parks.
An X-Men Reboot
Post-production on X-Men: Dark Phoenix is currently ongoing and there are currently no signs that Fox is planning on rebooting the franchise (even though the confusing and convoluted timeline could probably do with it at this point). However, should Marvel Studios regain the rights to the mutants, you have to believe we'll be forced to say goodbye to the likes of Michael Fassbender and Jennifer Lawrence.
The studio would probably be sad to see them go but you have to believe Marvel will want to start from scratch and go back to basics as they did with Spider-Man. A teenage group would probably work best with the reveal that the existence of mutants has been kept a secret; well, until something happens and they're finally exposed to the world. From there, the focus could be put on Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Beast, Iceman, and Angel with more heroes and villains added over time.
Avengers Vs. X-Men
Some fans believe that Marvel will put the Avengers franchise on hold for a while once the currently untitled fourth instalment is released but that seems highly unlikely given how much money it makes for Disney. Instead, it's far more plausible that it will take on a new form and a good way to introduce the X-Men to the Marvel Cinematic Universe would obviously be to pit them against Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Regardless of whether this was the first thing Marvel did or a storyline they take their time setting up, it's something comic book fans have been crying out to see for years now and even with a new cast replacing franchise stalwarts like James McAvoy and Nicholas Hoult, you have to believe that this would be a guaranteed box office hit and a priority for Marvel Studios to bring these heroes to the forefront of this shared world.
The Return Of The Fantastic Four
According to some flimsy reports, Fox is looking to reboot the Fantastic Four franchise via a movie which will take place from the point of view of Franklin and Valeria Richards and a spinoff revolving around Doctor Doom. Whether or not those will happen remains to be seen and while Marvel would no doubt approach the characters cautiously, you have to imagine they'd become a key part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Personally, I love the idea that they jetted off into space in the 1960s and have been trapped in the Negative Zone ever since. Alternatively, Marvel might want to put them on ice and focus on their impressive rogues' gallery instead; after all, Marvel made a deal to bring Ego the Living Planet into the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise and there's an awful lot they could do with the likes of Galactus, Silver Surfer, and Annihilus.
New Cosmic Villains
As I mentioned, one of the biggest draws for Marvel Studios when it comes back to regaining the X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises are their villains. While there are still plenty of bad guys who can be utilised in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Sentinels, Apocalypse, and characters such as the ones I mentioned above would provide years' worth of new stories regardless of the involvement of the X-Men and Fantastic Four.
Bear in mind that Marvel Studios is planning on taking things in a cosmic direction after Phase 3, so the appeal of throwing new characters into the mix must be huge. Like Thanos, Galactus is someone Marvel could build a decade's worth of stories around so you have to believe Kevin Feige may already be talking to Disney execs about how this deal could make the MCU even more massively profitable.
No More Inhumans
Marvel's Inhumans has been a flop both critically and in terms of ratings and even Kevin Feige is cracking jokes about Marvel Entertainment's decision to turn what was once going to be a Phase 3 movie into a TV show. Isaac Perlmutter has ordered the comics and licencing divisions of Marvel to take the spotlight off the Fantastic Four and X-Men to hurt Fox but this deal would change that.
As a result of the two lots of characters coming home, you have to believe we'd see a surge of new comic books revolving around the heroes, not to mention way more toys and video games (it's about damn time the entire Fantastic Four get a line of Funko Pops). With that in mind, we could probably expect to say goodbye to the Inhumans, though that may be happening regardless after the awful TV show.
...It Might Not Actually Happen
Here's the bad news. Shortly after CNBC published its report about the Disney/Fox deal, Bloomberg claimed that "the two sides aren’t talking anymore." The original report mentioned that as well but many have taken this as meaning the deal is completely dead and will never happen. Well, remember when we thought the same thing about Marvel and Sony Pictures teaming up to share Spider-Man?
Talks may have stalled for now but that doesn't mean they won't pick up again; it just means that both sides have walked away from the table to mull things over. The deal not including the FOX broadcasting network could be problematic but that's down to competition laws as Disney would not be allowed to air content on both that and ABC. It seems we'll have to wait and see but here's hoping a deal can be made.
Are you excited to see the Fantastic Four and X-Men potentially brought into the Marvel Cinematic Universe? As always, be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below.