It's happening, Disney officially closes on the rumored buyout of Fox's entertainment division for a reported $52 Billion. While there are many far-reaching implications of this from attaining powerhouse properties like The Simpsons and Futurama (mind you this is a merger The Simpsons predicted in 1998) it also means that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is going to get a whole lot bigger.
Disney announces it has reached a deal to acquire 21st Century Fox, as predicted by a Simpsons episode that first aired on November 8, 1998. pic.twitter.com/kzloJQHeM8
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) December 14, 2017
The X-Men, the Fantastic Four, and every single property tied to mutants can now be a part of the greater MCU. This is some big news with only the Spider-Man property still belonging to an outside studio (despite Sony playing nice with Disney).
This also brings home to Disney the rights to the original, un-Lucas'd version of the Star Wars: A New Hope. Finally opening the doors for a high-definition release of the original trilogy without George Lucas and his ego fueled "remaster."
No news yet what this could mean for forthcoming releases like Dark Phoenix or Deadpool 2, but the brightest spot for me is the possibility that Hugh Jackman could once again reprise his role as Wolverine. In an interview with Screenrant earlier this year, Jackman said:
"If that was on the table when I made my decision, it certainly would have made me pause," Jackman told the site. "That's for sure. Because I always love the idea of him within that dynamic, with the Hulk obviously, with Iron Man, but there's a lot of smarter people with MBAs who can't figure that out [laughter]. You never know."
Of course, this was before filming Logan and if they do bring Wolverine into the MCU it seems more likely that he will be recast.
Big things are coming and it looks like the House of Mouse continues its reign. With much of the original stars of the MCU primed to make an exit from the cinematic universe, it's comforting that there will be more films in this cinematic universe that can feature staple Marvel characters... now please, can we get a film adaptation of Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe?
