After voting to return Deadpool, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men to their rightful owner late last month, Disney Chairman and CEO Bob Iger has shifted his all-encompassing focus onto reclaiming another high profile intellectual property in August, Star Wars; but make no mistake, the House of Mouse isn’t stopping there.
According to MovieWeb, each and every entry into the highest grossing film franchise of all time – which you might know better as the Marvel Cinematic Universe – will be leaving Netflix in the foreseeable future and making their way onto the presently unnamed Disney streaming service.
Slated to launch sometime in 2019, the Disney streaming network – powered by BAMTech – will proffer an extensive back catalogue in addition to a live-action Star Wars television series, new Marvel content and, beginning with Captain Marvel – post-theatrical run, of course – each and every MCU movie.
As for retrieving the Marvel properties currently operating under Netflix, such as Iron Fist, Daredevil, Luke Cage and Jessica Jones, there’s no plan set in motion for those at the moment. Nevertheless, given the price tag of the amalgamation between itself and 21st Century Fox ($71B), expect Disney to make a significant push for The Defenders and co.
As of right now, it’s unclear how, exactly, The Walt Disney Company and Netflix will facilitate the transition, but I assume the latter will not be letting the Marvel Cinematic Universe go without a fight. That said, the subscription-based streaming service will presumptively not be alone in this war against the House of Mouse, as Disney was supposedly met with resistance upon making a “preliminary inquiry” to Turner Broadcasting for the rights to televise Lucasfilm’s multi-billion dollar franchise.
Regardless, should you choose not to purchase the MCU on home video, you’ll be forking over your hard-earned dough to the Disney streaming service by this time next year.