On Thursday, December 14th, The Walt Disney Company announced it will be buying 21st Century Fox for a total of  $52.4 billion. The deal still needs approval from antitrust regulators, seeing as the Justice Department is tightening reigns on big movie companies that are getting larger. The deal means that 21st Century will downsize significantly, getting absorbed mainly by Walt Disney. The deal excludes Fox News, the Fox broadcast network and the FS1 sports cable channel. These businesses will be altered to better adapt to the changing world.

Fox Studios has been around for over 80 years, producing hits such as “The Sound of Music”, the first “Star Wars” movie, and “Avatar”. But more recently, 21st Fox is struggling to keep pace with companies like Netflix and Hulu.

As for Disney, the chief executive, Robert A. Iger, was expected to retire the summer of 2019. However after the deal was made, Fox’s chairman, Rupert Murdoch, encouraged Iger to stay until 2021, another part of the deal between the two.

The two gave public announcements, Iger saying: “We’re honored and grateful that Rupert Murdoch has entrusted us with the future of businesses he spent a lifetime building”.

Murdoch adds, “I firmly believe that this combination with Disney will unlock even more value for shareholders as the new Disney continues to set the pace in what is an exciting and dynamic industry”.

So what does this mean for the average TV watcher? It means that film favorites such as the Avenger franchise will now be produced under the Disney corporation. As for specifics, there is no definite answer for casting or filming. Whether they will change the roles or style of these classic movies is up for speculation.

Disney is also at the head of ABC and ESPN companies, and as 21st Century Fox adds to their strength and size, hopefully they will be able to compete with technology to keep the company thriving.