Brow Beat

Disney Makes Deal to Acquire 21st Century Fox for $52.4 Billion

Mickey Mouse and CEO and chairman of The Walt Disney Company Bob Iger prepare to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Nov. 27.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The Walt Disney Company announced on Thursday that it will acquire most of 21st Century Fox in a deal valued at $52.4 billion. The acquisition will include Fox’s TV and film studios, cable networks such as National Geographic and FX, and international TV businesses. The deal does not include Fox News, Fox Business, FS1, FS2, or the Big Ten Network, which will remain under the control of Rupert Murdoch.

The agreement isn’t a done deal just yet—the acquisition still needs to be approved by antitrust regulators, and the Justice Department blocked another megamerger earlier this year. If the Fox-Disney deal goes through, however, it could have a dramatic effect on Disney’s future, giving the company a majority share in Hulu and granting Disney the rights to a number of Fox properties, including, to name just a few, The Simpsons, the Planet of the Apes franchise, and Avatar. The decision would also reunite X-Men and other characters owned or optioned by Fox with their other Marvel counterparts.