Now that Disney is buying a large chunk of 21st Century Fox, one question now is “how will this affect the movie-going experience?”
Disney announced Thursday it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the studio including Twentieth Century Fox Film and Television studios, along with cable and international TV businesses, for $52.4 billion in stock.
The blockbuster buy is exciting news for comic-book fans as this is only expected to grow the wave of superhero and blockbuster movies.
Screen Junkies Film Critic Dan Murrell however said this may be bad news for smaller films.
“I do feel like with all these franchises now, there’s going to be a bigger focus on the blockbusters and I hope this doesn’t mean there’s even less room now for these smaller movies that are just as vital and integral to the fabricate of Hollywood than these huge blockbusters.”
On one end, the purchase is exciting because Disney can now expand and continue it’s winning streak of successful, groundbreaking films but it’s also sad for fans of old Hollywood.
“Fox was one of the original, big studios. It was a name that was part of Warner Brothers and Paramount and the golden era of Hollywood and even though the Fox name isn’t going away, we think, it’s kind of the end of an era.”
A number of Disney employees may also lose their jobs as a result of the deal. The acquisition is expected to yield at least $2 billion in cost savings for Disney, the company said in a statement.
