The film world is a fascinating place right now, especially as Disney continues to acquire more assets and iconic brands. The House of Mouse's merger with 20th Century Fox recently became official, so the time has come to sort out exactly how two massive studios will end up combining. Disney acquired the rights to some very exciting properties from Fox, although it makes navigating a release schedule all the more confusing. Luckily, some answers are coming from this year's CinemaCon.
Disney already has a ton of projects coming down the pipeline, including animated blockbusters, the Star Wars franchise and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As such, acquiring 20th Century Fox is it a bit of a logistical nightmare, as that studio had a bunch of releases scheduled as well. Disney won't want to cannibalize its own box office numbers, and while presenting at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, President of Distribution Franchise Cathleen Taff mentioned the adjustments to film's releases. She said:
So much has happened this year. Of course, the biggest news in the year of big news is welcoming the Fox filmmaking team studios to Disney, greatly expanding our collection of world class brands… It’s an incredible collection of films with truly something for everyone. As you probably know, a couple of these films do share the same release date. We know some adjustments are going to need to be made, but we’ll have updates for you very soon.
Well, that seems pretty cut and dry. The House of Mouse isn't intending on shooting itself in the foot regarding the release schedule, so some changes may be made to either Fox or Disney flicks in order to avoid conflicts at the box office. Because if there's one thing the studio is good at, it's making money.
Cathleen Taff's comments from CinemaCon are sure to turn a few heads, as there are a ton of highly anticipated movies arriving in theaters over the next two years. It's perfectly logical that the release schedule might be altered, although the question is: how? Cinephiles have been eager for any and all information regarding Disney's merger with Fox, and the recent convention in Las Vegas has provided the first concrete information now that the deal's in ink.
While Disney didn't reveal which upcoming movies would be shifting their release date, they did unveil the next year or so of programing. This includes the fate of Josh Boone's The New Mutants, which seemed like it was in jeopardy before CinemaCon. Not only is the horror inspired X-Men movie still getting a theatrical release, but it'll arrive shortly after Dark Phoenix on August 2nd. That should be a relief to comic book fans, although the public will have to sit tight for a better idea regarding the scheduling adjustments.
CinemaBlend will keep you updated on Disney's' acquisition of Fox as more details become public. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
