Not everything Marvel owns is superheroes (right now I'm imagining an animated film based on the monster comics of Jack Kirby) but it would be uncharacteristic of Pixar to start using stories and characters it hadn't come up with itself. The only major exception I can think of is Barbie in the Toy Story pictures. However, I understand she's getting a more prominent place in Toy Story 3, so perhaps that's a sign that Pixar's becoming more interested in making films using characters not generated in Emeryville.
I'm trying to imagine how the acquisition might impact the theme parks. Perhaps each of the sponsored Future World pavillions at Epcot could be matched with a different Super-Villain: Spaceship Earth could be attacked by Galactus, Electro could take over Universe of Energy, ttuma could lurk inside The Living Seas, etc... I'm sure the corporate sponsors won't mind being associated with a character with designs on world conquest...
Disney to buy Marvel for $4 billion
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That sucks. Not that the films were any measure of distinctive or quirky, but Disney tends to put its fingerprints on everything, marring the glass and ruining their films. Their drive to make all their films "family" films often makes them crap. Now they'll further water down the super hero franchises...gah.
Now, if it can maintain autonomy, it might not be so bad, but Pixar very specifically forced itself into that position before it would be sold. I doubt Marvel will have done such.
Now, if it can maintain autonomy, it might not be so bad, but Pixar very specifically forced itself into that position before it would be sold. I doubt Marvel will have done such.
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Disney to buy Marvel for $4 billion
Associated Press
Aug. 31, 2009, 10:11AM
LOS ANGELES — The Walt Disney Co. said today it is buying Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4 billion in cash and stock, bringing such characters as Iron Man and Spider-Man into the family of Mickey Mouse and WALL-E.
Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of 5,000 Marvel characters. Many of them, including the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, were co-created by the comic book legend Stan Lee.
Analyst David Joyce of Miller Tabak & Co. said the acquisition will help Disney appeal to young men who have flocked to theaters to see Marvel’s superhero fare in recent years. That contrasts with Disney’s recent successes among young women with such fare as “Hannah Montana” and the Jonas Brothers.
“It helps Disney add exposure to a young male demographic it had sort of lost some balance with,” Joyce said, noting the $4 billion offer was at “full price.”
Disney said Marvel shareholders will receive $30 per share in cash, plus 0.745 Disney shares for every Marvel share they own. That values each Marvel share at $50 based on Friday’s closing stock prices.
Marvel shares jumped $10.17, or 26 percent, to $48.82 shortly after the market opened. Disney shares fell 47 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $26.37.
Disney said the boards of both companies have approved the transaction, but it will require an antitrust review and the approval of Marvel shareholders.
Disney last made a big purchase in 2006 when it acquired Pixar Animation Studios Inc., the creator of the “Toy Story” franchise, for $7.4 billion in stock.
Disney CEO Robert Iger said the latest acquisition combines Marvel’s “strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters” with Disney’s “unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties” and ability to maximize value across multiple platforms and territories.
Marvel earned a net profit of $206 million last fiscal year, up 47 percent from a year earlier, on revenue of $676 million, as it took movie production in house instead of just cutting licensing deals.
Associated Press
Aug. 31, 2009, 10:11AM
LOS ANGELES — The Walt Disney Co. said today it is buying Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4 billion in cash and stock, bringing such characters as Iron Man and Spider-Man into the family of Mickey Mouse and WALL-E.
Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of 5,000 Marvel characters. Many of them, including the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, were co-created by the comic book legend Stan Lee.
Analyst David Joyce of Miller Tabak & Co. said the acquisition will help Disney appeal to young men who have flocked to theaters to see Marvel’s superhero fare in recent years. That contrasts with Disney’s recent successes among young women with such fare as “Hannah Montana” and the Jonas Brothers.
“It helps Disney add exposure to a young male demographic it had sort of lost some balance with,” Joyce said, noting the $4 billion offer was at “full price.”
Disney said Marvel shareholders will receive $30 per share in cash, plus 0.745 Disney shares for every Marvel share they own. That values each Marvel share at $50 based on Friday’s closing stock prices.
Marvel shares jumped $10.17, or 26 percent, to $48.82 shortly after the market opened. Disney shares fell 47 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $26.37.
Disney said the boards of both companies have approved the transaction, but it will require an antitrust review and the approval of Marvel shareholders.
Disney last made a big purchase in 2006 when it acquired Pixar Animation Studios Inc., the creator of the “Toy Story” franchise, for $7.4 billion in stock.
Disney CEO Robert Iger said the latest acquisition combines Marvel’s “strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters” with Disney’s “unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties” and ability to maximize value across multiple platforms and territories.
Marvel earned a net profit of $206 million last fiscal year, up 47 percent from a year earlier, on revenue of $676 million, as it took movie production in house instead of just cutting licensing deals.
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler