Back when the talks of Disney's acquisition of Fox were still up in the air, many wondered how their favorite Fox shows may be affected by a merger. Hell, folks are still speculating that now, and Family Guy is latching onto the idea of Disney expanding brands with three fake spinoffs in its upcoming episode "Disney's The Reboot."
The episode, which is set to air Sunday, October 20, will feature three "reboots" of shows that put a new spin on Family Guy. There's "Family Gal," which is a Lois-led reboot executive producer Rich Appel described to EW as "very timely and pandering." It sounds like a premise that could get some people riled up, though that is kind of what Family Guy does.
The second, called "The Q," is described as a Riverdale-type drama that will riff on that as well as other teen dramas of the type. The final one, "After Family Guy," is a continuation of the show that follows Chris and Trish Takanawa as they raise Joe. The episode looks to be a riff on reboots where not all the biggest names are present, like The Conners or Fuller House.
There's a meta element to the entire episode beyond the Disney acquisition, as each segment will have the Family Guy characters observing focus groups of each reboot. Rich Appel confirmed there will be some jokes made at Disney's expense, but presumably nothing that will cause some higher ups to rethink their partnership with the franchise. Appel assured the staff was more than thrilled with the acquisition and are confident that Disney knows what they're doing with its brands.
Overall, "Disney's The Reboot" is going to be a fun acknowledgement of the changing of the guard at Fox, and Family Guy nodding at that. Rich Appel said the team hasn't had to change its tone or story content yet since Disney took over, but they do recognize there will be some changes. As an example, Appel noted the show's Star Wars specials it did with Lucasfilm and how that's something he can't imagine getting green-lit these days. Sad news for anyone who was hoping for one of those!
Of course, it is somewhat humorous that Family Guy is using the Disney acquisition to riff on reboots considering it has dabbled in the spinoff game before with The Cleveland Show. It's not like that makes it invalid, as Disney does find many ways to expand its franchises with spinoffs and reboots. Just saying, if Disney has any ideas for another Family Guy spinoff, it may have potential.
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Family Guy airs on Fox Sundays at 9:30 p.m. ET. Stick with CinemaBlend for more updates on what's happening this fall season in regards to movies and television.
