It’s official. Disney now owns 21st Century Fox and its high-profile film franchises after concluding a deal worth $52.4 billion. It’s a monumental and game-changing piece of business that’s set to alter the landscape of cinema and comic book movies forever. Heck, this means that Disney now owns 27% of the entire film industry. Subsequently, it means that Marvel holds the rights to the likes of the X-Men, Fantastic Four and Deadpool again.
With these characters back in the House of Idea’s playpen, anything is truly possible now in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and we should start seeing it expanding and including all these new players in the not-too-distant future. That said, due to the nature and pace of the industry, some of them might take a little while to enter the fray, while others could be primed and ready to make their MCU debuts as soon as possible.
Either way, having the X-Men and Fantastic Four, among others, back home at Marvel is great news for everyone and no one agrees with that more than Stan Lee, the comic book legend who gave birth to many of these heroes and villains. When asked for his thoughts on the groundbreaking deal, here’s what he had to say:
“It’s a truly great piece of news! Now characters such as the X-Men and the Fantastic Four can come home to the place where they belong. It’s vitally important to have the Marvel characters under one roof. And now, as great as they were before, I can’t wait to see the wonders that will unfold!”
Lee’s comments no doubt echo the sentients shared by many fans. Having these properties back under one umbrella (the Marvel Cinematic Universe) can only be a good thing and with the studio now having their hands on all these characters that they’ve never had access to before, the possibilities are truly endless. I mean, Avengers vs. X-Men is just the tip of the iceberg here and we’re giddy with excitement to see where the MCU goes next. Especially with Kevin Feige leading the charge.
After all, the man seems to have the Midas touch. After 10 years and a ludicrous amount of box office revenue, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become Hollywood’s biggest outlet for competent, expertly crafted superhero movies. So let’s just hope that continues long into Phase 4 when the X-Men and other long-time Marvel characters begin to enter the fold.
