Disney and Fox: The disadvantages of a potential deal for Marvel
If Disney and Fox’s blockbuster deal comes to fruition, how could it be disadvantageous for Marvel?
The word is out that 20th Century Fox may sell its film rights of Marvel characters to Walt Disney, the parent company of Marvel. Fans have been clamoring for years to see the X-Men join the good graces of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not only that, but one could assume Fantastic Four can finally be given justice on the big screen. There is plenty of hope in this but we need to step back and take heed of some possible drawbacks.
Time and Space
Right now we have three studios that churn out comic book movies every year – Disney, Warner Bros. and Fox. In some cases you can have a lesser known title from another studio.With all of the characters and properties under Disney, this could lead to lesser titles at your cinema. It would appear Marvel is picking up some slack in releasing more than two films a year. 2018 will offer us Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War and Ant-Man and the Wasp. If they carry a three-film deal per year now can you truly picture them squeezing in another say from X-Men or Fantastic Four? I argue the X-Men universe is so large that they may be smart enough to always have an X-Men related film each year. Again, this is only a best guess scenario under the notion they own everything. Right now, we do not have to worry about less X-Men films on a lighter basis.
Marvel Reboots
Yes, that pesky thing that makes many people’s blood boil. Sony has rebooted Spider-Man twice, with only a gap of roughly four years between these two reboots. Fox has also had something of an X-Men reboot. Over at Warner Bros. Batman got a reboot only 3 years after Nolan finished with him. Take in mind that Disney will most likely not continue what Fox has already set-up, with all current casting and plot elements. Disney will want to do their own take. One can only hope with a reboot they can easily glance over all origins similar to how they handled Spider-Man recently.
Content and Direction
We simply cannot deny how hilariously violent and over-the-top Deadpool was. Do you truly believe Marvel will do the same? A while ago Feige commented on how R-Rated films were not something under consideration at the time, but not fully off the table, either.
Let’s be honest. Marvel’s parent company is Disney. There is no way they would consider an R-Rated release. They have a nice family friendly image to uphold. They already built up numerous characters for kids and cannot jeopardize them with possible links to graphically violent characters. Hey, kids, you love Hulk, now watch Hulk fight Deadpool and his off-color humor about masturbation.
There is no debate over how radical a departure Logan was from traditional comic book movies. The possibility of Disney doing a deconstructionist, avant-garde western ala Logan is next to highly unlikely. There is an approach to their films, coinciding in this formulaic pattern. This approach has created lackluster villains, low stakes and sometimes too much humor. Disney has kept it safe. Fox took risks, such as bringing the two teams together in X-Men: Days of Future Past. The other films like Logan and Deadpool owe their visions to the likes of their respective creative teams. Marvel has a more committee-based approach to their films.
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Keep in mind this is not to completely deny the benefits of this deal. Any fan should be happy to see Wolverine with the Avengers and Marvel finally bringing us a terrific Fantastic Four film. One must keep in mind this deal could come with some drawbacks. Fox has an audience who is content with what they are already doing. Is there a need to spoil it all for them?