News that Twentieth Century Fox was potentially looking at selling most of their entertainment division to Disney shocked the internet earlier this week, as this would open the door for a cinematic crossover between Marvel’s biggest brands – the Avengers, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four. While some have said that the talks died out, a recent report suggests otherwise, thanks in part to Fox getting a huge boost from its shareholders.
CNBC just released a follow-up report on Tuesday’s story with additional reporting from their correspondent David Faber. Faber stated that, while some other outlets are less optimistic about the possibility of a sale happening, what he’s hearing indicates that discussions are ongoing:
“Pencils aren’t down; it does appear at the very least that they have not abandoned the idea of that combination.”
As it currently stands, the rumors of a sale have made Fox and Disney shareholders alike happy — as of Friday alone, the Twenty-First Century division of Fox has seen an increase of 4% to their stock’s value since the rumors first got out, and Disney has seen a more modest increase of 2.9%. Overall, since the state of the week shares of Fox proper have been boosted by 18%, and Disney’s by 7%. Money talks, and it seems as though it’s in the best interests of both companies to keep discussing a deal.
Rumors of partnership between Disney and a rival studio have been beneficial in the past, as talks that Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures were discussing a Spider-Man and Marvel Cinematic Universe crossover helped boost momentum toward integrating the Spider-Man franchise into the greater setting, leading to the character’s acclaimed appearance in Captain America: Civil War and a reboot to his standalone series that fought off the curse of diminishing returns. Something similar happening to the Fantastic Four brand would be a real shot in the arm for the property, so here’s hoping that the two companies will be able to work something out.
Source: CNBC
