Disney could emerge from Fox deal with part ownership of the Batman property

Batteries to power! Turbines to speed! Batman to Disney! Wait, what?

That's right, my friends. Well, in-part, but still. Please, allow me to explain … You know about The Walt Disney Company's potential deal to acquire 20th Century Fox, correct? If the arrangement comes to pass, it will place the House of Mouse in a position to feature Fox's Marvel characters (like the X-Men and Fantastic Four) as a part of the MCU. While this concept is already the cause of much talk, there's yet another aspect of the deal that pertains to a popular comic book property.

CBR reports that, if Disney does acquire 20th Century Fox, it could also give Disney the rights to the 1960s Batman TV series (starring Adam West and Burt Ward) as well as an opportunity to influence the future of the GOTHAM TV show. The outlet also states that although Warner Bros. owns Batman and the rest of DC Entertainment’s characters, Fox owns the rights to Batman’s 1960s show. Through Gotham, the Fox Broadcasting Network also currently holds Batman’s live-action TV rights.

When you get down to it, this potential deal really is something major. With a confirmation on the agreement potentially coming as early as next week, it might not be long before we see Disney wolf down another heafty slice of entertainment pie. Hell, maybe acquiring Marvel and Lucasfilm was just Disney's idea of sampling a few appetizers, so to speak. The deal is no easy feat, though. The acquisition is worth $60 billion, so U.S. government regulators will have to approve of the deal before any exchange of ownership can take place. Still, imagine how much something like this will influence the industry. After all, if the deal goes through, Disney would also get Fox’s other cable channels, its share in Hulu and access to the streamer's vast content library, which includes shows produced by 20th Century Fox Television.

Whoa. Now imagine yourself walking into a souvenir shop at a Walt Disney theme park and seeing Bat Ears next to the Mouse Ears hats. What a world we're living in, huh?

What do you all think of this? Would you like to see Disney influence the creative direction of GOTHAM? Would you rather them establish new Batman TV shows on their own? Do you not want Disney to go anywhere near your Bat-TV? Let us know in the comments section below.

Source: CBR.com

About the Author

Born and raised in New York, then immigrated to Canada, Steve Seigh has been a JoBlo.com editor, columnist, and critic since 2012. He started with Ink & Pixel, a column celebrating the magic and evolution of animation, before launching the companion YouTube series Animation Movies Revisited. He's also the host of the Talking Comics Podcast, a personality-driven audio show focusing on comic books, film, music, and more. You'll rarely catch him without headphones on his head and pancakes on his breath.