Over the weekend, Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger opened up during an interview with The New York Times. He admitted that Disney did “too much, too fast” with the Star Wars franchise. Iger also revealed that Fox’s Rupert Murdoch was intiially furious over the fact that Fox couldn’t acquire Star Wars and Lucasfilm before Disney.
“Rupert was crazed that we bought Lucas,” explained Iger. “They were the distributor of all of [George Lucas’] movies, and he was very disappointed in his people. ‘Why didn’t you think of this?’”
Fox’s partnership with Lucas dates back to 1977, with the initial release of Star Wars before it became A New Hope. That collaboration continued through 2005, with the final chapter in Lucas’ prequel trilogy, Revenge of the Sith. Disney took over Lucasfilm in October 2012, after purchasing the company for just over $4 billion.
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Of course, Murdoch can’t be angry anymore. Back in March, Disney completed its acquisition of Fox and all of its entertainment assets. The deal went for just over $71 billion, and gave Disney control of a number of hit franchises. That includes the full rights for the original Star Wars film, Avatar, and The Simpsons, along with Marvel properties like Deadpool and the X-Men.
The full interview with Iger is available here.
What do you think about Fox missing out on the chance to acquire Lucasfilm and the Star Wars franchise? Let us know in the comments below!
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