One of the biggest names in film is set to step into gaming, as Disney reveals its made a HUGE investment in one of the biggest gaming developers on the block.
Part of a bundle of news unveiled by Disney CEO Bob Iger on Wednesday, the film giant also revealed that hit film Moana was set to receive a follow-up - and it's landing this year.
In what can only be described as a bumper crop of entertainment news, the Mouse House today revealed its plans expand further into gaming, investing a huge $1.5 billion in “Fortnite” developer Epic Games.
It's part of the brand's latest diversity strategy, with the ongoing boom in online gaming attracting huge audiences around the world.
Described as Disney's “biggest foray into the game space ever,” Iger added that the future looks bright for the entertainment house.
“We’ve entered into a strategic relationship with Epic Games, the maker of ‘Fortnite’ to not only invest in the company — [Disney] took a minority stake of $1.5 billion investment — but we’re also creating a huge Disney universe,” Iger said in an interview on CNBC.
The deal with Epic means gamers will be able to interact with a host of characters from across the worlds of Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and Avatar.
In simple terms, Disney aims to create an expansive open games universe that's directly connected to Fortnite.
Not bad, eh?
Today's news is music to the ears of both film and gaming fans, as the giant also revealed that Moana 2 is officially in the works.
A surprise that no-one was expecting, Disney's CEO revealed that a Moana sequel will hit cinemas later this year.
It follows word that the sequel was originally poised to become a television series launching on the Disney+ streaming service, however, bosses were so impressed with the initial results that a feature-length instalment was the only sensible option.
“We were impressed by what we saw and knew it deserved a theatrical release,” said Iger, adding that Moana had been streamed for more than 1 billion minutes on Disney+ in 2023 alone.
Plus, let's not forget the small matter of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, which the pop star announced had found its home on the giant's streaming service Disney+ to coincide with the rest of Wednesday's big news.
PHEW.
The future is definitely looking bright for Disney, despite the company being put under pressure by investors including Nelson Peltz.
The US billionaire is pushing for Disney to boost profits across the board, after a host of releases, including those forming part of the Marvel franchise, failed to set the box office alight.
Whatever the case, with this bevvy of entertainment content on the horizon, we're definitely sticking around.
- While we have you, these are the best Disney Plus shows worth checking out
