Once the public face of squeaky-clean, harmless family entertainment, the Walt Disney Corporation has evolved into a widespread conglomerate known as much for the properties it controls as the films it produces. With subsidiaries including Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, National Geographic, A&E, 20th Century Fox, ESPN, Hulu, and Pixar, Disney has a commanding control of some of the world’s most lucrative franchises, plus an extensive library of film and TV classics. Its streaming service Disney+ signals a new interest in controlling its own online distribution, setting aside decades of licensing partnerships. Follow along with The Verge as we look at Disney’s new films and shows, and its strategies for dominating the box office and the streaming dollar.
The MCU’s new crossover tentpole is focused on trauma, bad jokes, and getting the movie franchise back on solid footing.
It has been 30 years since A Goofy Movie first hit theaters, and to celebrate the film’s anniversary, Disney just uploaded an immersive, virtual reality version of the Powerline concert sequence that features 360 degree audio and a handful of new easter eggs.
Fifty years after The Rocky Horror Picture Show premiered in 1975, the Walt Disney Studios Restoration team has overseen a 10-month project that included a “meticulous digital scan and preservation process that ensures every frame of the cult classic is presented with unprecedented clarity and vibrancy.”
The 4K restoration will also feature a “newly mixed Dolby Atmos audio track” and a restored version of the film’s original mono audio for fans wanting the most authentic experience.
Andor’s final chapter feels like a series of mini-movies about how wars for freedom are won in fits and starts.
Hayden Christensen will return to Ahsoka as Anakin Skywalker and rebel commander Admiral Ackbar will go “head-to-head” with Grand Admiral Thrawn, series creator Dave Filoni told the audience at Star Wars Celebration in Japan last night.
That’s according to Deadline, which also writes that the series will feature Rory McCann as the fallen Jedi Baylen Skol, following the May 2023 death of actor Ray Stevenson.
It’s been a while since Darth Maul last appeared Star Wars Rebels, but during this year’s Star Wars Celebration, Luscasfilm announced that the horned Sith is set to star in a new animated Disney Plus series due out in 2026.
Though Disney Plus and Marvel haven’t officially announced when the second of Daredevil: Born Again will debut, showrunner Dario Scardapane seems fairly confident in a recent Instagram post that it’s happening next March.
Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies sees the new season’s first villain as a reflection of our times.
Doctor Who stars Ncuti Gatwa and Varada Sethu open up about how Miss Belinda Chandra is going to shake up the series.
While fans of Andor and The Mandalorian are busy arguing with one another about which is the superior Star Wars spinoff, Tony Gilroy is out here telling Empire what should be obvious to anyone with a basic understanding of how franchises work:
“The success of The Mandalorian gave us the platform to jump off. Their success is what would fuel the whole thing. I mean, no Baby Yoda, no Andor. Seriously. Don’t think that we don’t know that.”
As reported by the New York Times and CNBC, FCC chair Brendan Carr has followed up on a previous threat against Disney in a new letter (pdf). Now he says its enforcement bureau will investigate to see if it’s “violating FCC equal employment opportunity regulations by promoting invidious forms of DEI discrimination.”
Along with an administration-wide push to remake government and industry that targets the catch-all buzzword, Carr has said it will be a focus for merger and acquisition approvals, and has begun inquiries into other companies.
If you’re tired of a family member messing up your Continue Watching queue, you can now remove TV shows and movies by pressing and holding your remote’s select button on Apple TV and hitting “Remove.” You can also find the option within the three-dot menu next to a show on the iOS app and the web.
Disney says this feature is coming to more platforms “in the coming weeks.”
A Death Star is coming together in the latest trailer for Andor’s final season, and every member of the Resistance seems to know exactly what needs to be done to take the thing out.
That’s according to The Wrap, which says the showrunners from Percy Jackson and the Olympians are in line to produce the show. This adds one more to the list of rumored Hasbro IP adaptations we’ve heard about, like the in-development live-action film and TV “universe” based on Magic: The Gathering, a Monopoly movie, new Clue projects, and a D&D series with Netflix.
To get folks hyped up for the upcoming debut of Andor’s second season on Disney Plus April 22nd, Disney has put the show’s entire first season on Hulu and uploaded its first three episodes on YouTube. Additionally, on March 13th, Andor creator Tony Gilroy will host a live, hour-long rewatch event streamed on YouTube “with select talent,” which better be code for “Diego Luna and national treasure Kathryn Hunter.”
Jack Kirby, the iconic comics artist who co-created Marvel’s X-Men and Avengers, and originated DC’s New Gods, is the subject of Kirbyvision, a new documentary from director Ricki Stern (Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, UFOs: Investigating the Unknown).
According to Stern, the doc is her way of pushing for Kirby to finally receive some of the recognition he deserves as the creative wellspring companies like Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery are still drawing from.
Disney is reportedly laying off 200 employees (about 6 percent of its workforce) from its ABC News Group and Disney Entertainment Networks units.
The latest round of firings will impact ABC’s 20/20 and Nightline news magazine shows, whose production teams are being consolidated into a single unit. And Disney also plans to wind down 538, which the company bought back in 2018.
Correction: Nate Silver left 538 in 2023.
Disney Plus’ new Daredevil series is an uneven reboot that’s fighting to leave its past behind.
Puck reports that Kennedy, who has steered franchises like Star Wars and Indiana Jones since Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, has informed the studio and others that she will step down by the end of 2025.
In 2023, Kennedy announced three new Star Wars films before murkier reports appeared last year about a new trilogy, and we just saw a new trailer for Andor season two. If there is a change at the top, then it could come with some clarity about the series’ future on big and small screens alike.
[puck.news]
You might not have been keeping up with the development of Marvel’s Nova, Strange Academy, and Terror, Inc. Disney Plus series, but Deadline reports that the studio is putting all three on hold as it rethinks which projects it wants to prioritize for the MCU’s future.
Peter Parker only had eyes for Pearl Pangan in Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man’s first season, but that might change when the show returns with a new version of Gwen Stacy in tow.
Marvel’s latest Captain America movie.
Disney Plus’ new animated Spider-Man series wants you to appreciate what being a community-focused hero looks like.
Last year’s price hikes helped Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN Plus bring in a $293 million profit during the last three months of 2024, making it the second profitable quarter in a row. However, Disney Plus lost around 700,000 subscribers, bringing its total to 124.6 million globally.
Ahead of Fantastic Four: First Steps’ new trailer debuting tomorrow, Marvel has dropped a kitschy teaser hyping up the team’s launch into space.
