The Rebooted "Keep Hope Alive" (that the rights can revert back to Marvel) Thread - - - - - - - - - - Part 19

[Dark Raven]

Now what have Comcast done?

 

[MasterCat]

And in terms of Phase 4, I think at this point there still may be an issue in terms of what's already ahead of them. They must have the next 3-4 years already planned out fairly specifically, and they can't just throw that schedule away. But if Fox won't be making films, that could open up some spots.

2020 is already locked in (they're about to hire Black Widow's director, and the other two slots are sequels). Kevin Feige says he has a rigidly fixed plan through the end of 2022, but I don't buy that if he gets a call from his superiors that the DOJ has cleared the merger, he's going to say everything depends on The Eternals coming out in 2021 when there's not even a script for that.

 

[Scarecrow_King]

They moved stuff around for Spidey. They can do whatever the **** they want with their schedule.

 

[ADollarADay]

If the Antitrust approval is done in 2 weeks and the whole deal is approved, then does that mean we could actually start seeing these characters in Phase 4 and not have to wait until next summer? Or am I just getting overly excited for nothing lol

Take it with the biggest grain of salt ever because I don't even know who runs this twitter account:

Hypothetically:$CMCSA drops out$DIS/ $FOXA gets DOJ approval in 2 weeks
How soon could this deal close?
Source: "lots of intl approvals needed. still need FCC and a shareholder vote: i'd say 4 months"

But it's also in line with what I originally expected. 4 months from DOJ approval in 2 weeks would bring it close to 12 months since the announcement which is in line with what they expected.

 

[MasterCat]

They moved stuff around for Spidey. They can do whatever the **** they want with their schedule.

Yes. I think the biggest concern is that this much shorter timetable puts an unreleased Dark Phoenix and The New Mutants in Disney's hands rather than independent Fox's.

 

[Art Freak]

Yes. I think the biggest concern is that this much shorter timetable puts an unreleased Dark Phoenix and The New Mutants in Disney's hands rather than independent Fox's.

That’s a concern?

 

[MasterCat]

That’s a concern?

Yes...? If Dark Phoenix cost as much as X-Men: Apocalypse ($178 million), it would be unprecedented - I think - to bury it. But then they have to make the hard decisions on how many tens of millions to spend advertising it, and releasing will complicate the timetable for rebooting X-Men within the MCU.

I also don't know how much Fox has spent on The New Mutants.

 

[AndrewGilkison]

I see Disney releasing Dark Phoenix and New Mutants and **** canning any future movies in development in the "FOX-Men verse" that haven't already been shot (which means bye bye Gambit, X-Force, etc).

 

[Chip Chipperson]

I hope Dark Phoenix gets a fair shake, it might not end up being good but I think if it’s the last FoX-Men film, it should at least have the chance to take a bow.

 

[Dark Raven]

If Marvel want to do Dark Phoenix themselves later down the line, then why would they put Kinberg's DP out just for the sake of it? They should stick it in a vault somewhere.

Maybe when Disney are paying off Fox's debt, that also includes films like Dark Phoenix and New Mutants so that these don't have to be released but they are still compensated for making them.

 

[VictusMortuus]

I think even if Comcast raises their bid the deal is done for Disney acquiring Fox. I think Comcast pissed Fox off when they aggressively outbid them for Sky.

 

[Bach]

I hope they bury Dark Phoenix. It wouldn't make sense to release it now that the Disney / Fox deal is almost done.

It doesn't even have a trailer so I doubt they've invested that much money on it. I think the production has been on hold since December, when the deal was announced.

 

[Big Bang]

I think even if Comcast raises their bid the deal is done for Disney acquiring Fox. I think Comcast pissed Fox off when they aggressively outbid them for Sky.

The latest word is their next bid will be cash and stock. Which IMO, still leaves Comcast at a disadvantage.

 

[Detective Conan]

The latest word is their next bid will be cash and stock. Which IMO, still leaves Comcast at a disadvantage.

Big Bang how much higher can Comcast go before they throw in the towel?

 

[JKKS085]

The most sensible thing to do regarding Dark Phoenix would be to market it in a way that is as far removed as possible from the X-Men brand. That means ditching X-Men from the title (which may or may not have happened already), removing mentions of the X-Men in any promotional material and tie-ins and even in the movie itself if that’s at all possible. They should also be careful with mentions/use of other properties/characters that they may be inclined to feature in other MCU films (the Skrulls if they are indeed in the movie should be switched to a generic race of aliens, same with the Shi’ar, the Savage Land has to be called something else and shouldn’t be located in Antarctica).

But let’s face it, it doesn’t matter who owns 21CT next year, no one would just shelf a 200M tentpole. Regardless of quality or future plans.

 

[Dark Raven]

I don't know how they can remarket Dark Phoenix realistically. Don't they have most of the same actors from the other X-Men prequel films? It can't be just a generic film that happens to star all the same actors and who do things in a similar way.

What's the likelihood of another blue character played by Jennifer Lawrence who happens to look like Mystique, or a bald guy in a wheelchair. What will they rename him if they redub some dialogue so as to make the whole thing a generic movie? Professor Eggs?

 

[MasterCat]

I hope they bury Dark Phoenix. It wouldn't make sense to release it now that the Disney / Fox deal is almost done.

It doesn't even have a trailer so I doubt they've invested that much money on it.

Wrong. They've made the film, which likely had a budget of around $178 million like Apocalypse. The director said he came in under budget but needs to reshoot parts test audiences didn't like, saying he'll try to keep to a $10 million lid on reboot costs.
Unless you know otherwise, burying a film that expensive has simply never been done.

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

I was listening to CNBC on the way home this evening. They went around the table asking who would ultimately get Fox, and they unanimously said it would be Disney.

 

[Iceman]

I hope Dark Phoenix gets a fair shake, it might not end up being good but I think if it’s the last FoX-Men film, it should at least have the chance to take a bow.

What's the point if it's not good though?

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

Not only will they release Dark Phoenix, but you can bet, once they own all the Fox assets, Fant4stic will be available on their streaming service. What do you think about that?

I will only be able to truly enjoy watching Fant4stic after the rights are in Disney's hands.t:

 

[Big Bang]

Big Bang how much higher can Comcast go before they throw in the towel?

Like Dollar said on the previous page, Comcast could raise north of $85B. Whether they do or not remains to be seen. I personally don't think it will get that far. The deal Disney has struck is quite beefy. Not just the cash and stock they are offering, but taking on $12B of debt from Fox as well. If the source is true, and they are not too far off from getting regulatory clearance, than I think that will be the kiss of death for Comcast's chances. Disney just has too much leverage in this situation now, and its balance sheet is more flexible.

IMO, Comcast is only delaying the inevitable.

 

[MasterCat]

Not only will they release Dark Phoenix, but you can bet, once they own all the Fox assets, Fant4stic will be available on their streaming service. What do you think about that?

I will only be able to truly enjoy watching Fant4stic after the rights are in Disney's hands.t:

The Story films are much better and there are two of them, so I wouldn't be surprised if Disney put those on their streaming service and locked Fant4stic in a vault forever.

 

[Big Bang]

Wrong. They've made the film, which likely had a budget of around $178 million like Apocalypse. The director said he came in under budget but needs to reshoot parts test audiences didn't like, saying he'll try to keep to a $10 million lid on reboot costs.
Unless you know otherwise, burying a film that expensive has simply never been done.

I'd add "quotes" to that term. It's Simon Kinberg after all.

I was listening to CNBC on the way home this evening. They went around the table asking who would ultimately get Fox, and they unanimously said it would be Disney.

Yep, consensus seems to be building more and more toward that.

Not only will they release Dark Phoenix, but you can bet, once they own all the Fox assets, Fant4stic will be available on their streaming service. What do you think about that?

I will only be able to truly enjoy watching Fant4stic after the rights are in Disney's hands.t:

Yep, they are going to leverage every drop they can from Fox. Sometimes you just need a dumb movie to pass the time, and that one more than fits the bill.

 

[Detective Conan]

I was listening to CNBC on the way home this evening. They went around the table asking who would ultimately get Fox, and they unanimously said it would be Disney.

Doesn’t Comcast own CNBC? lol.

 

[Marvel united]

I'd add "quotes" to that term. It's Simon Kinberg after all.

Yep, consensus seems to be building more and more toward that.

Yep, they are going to leverage every drop they can from Fox. Sometimes you just need a dumb movie to pass the time, and that one more than fits the bill.

If Comcast loses, maybe they should just go after smaller studios. Go after Sony, Paramount, MGM etc.