Disney-Fox Merger: Up To 10,000 People Might Lose Their Jobs
Disney's acquisition of Fox is starting to reveal its dark side.
The merger between Walt Disney Company and 21st Century Fox has been the talk of the town since negotiations between two of Hollywood's biggest studios were reported up to the point where it was finalized last week. Fans were delighted that the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, and Deadpool are finally coming home and will become a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Others are concerned about how the merger will affect the movie industry moving forward. The U.S. government is even interested in taking a closer look at the game-changing merger for potentially violating antitrust laws.
However, one immediate negative impact would be the thousands of job losses.
Thousands Of Livelihood At Stake
Rich Greenfield, an analyst from the global financial firm BTIG, told Deadline that the merger could cause as "few" as 5,000 to as many as 10,000 jobs could be vacated because of the merger.
"Disney expects over $2 billion in synergies from the Fox acquisition, with the overwhelming majority of that cost-savins-meaning job cuts," he wrote. "In order to reduce costs by upwards of $2 billion, we believe Disney will need to cut well-over 5,000 jobs and the number could easily swell toward 10,000 given the high degree of overlap between the two companies around the world."
Greenfield is not alone in criticizing the merger. The Writer's Guild of America also expressed concern over the billion-dollar deal.
In a statement, the organization, which represents 10,000 writers in the industry, claimed that the acquisition is nothing but Disney's move to eliminate its competition and gain even more power over Hollywood.
However, President Donald Trump is concerned about something else. Gabriel Sherman of Vanity Fair revealed that the Commander-in-Chief phoned Rupert Murdoch, chairman of 20th Century Fox and a staunch supporter, before the merger to congratulate the media mogul.
Trump also made sure that Murdoch is not selling Fox News.
Murdoch has already sent a memo to staff that significant layoffs are expected.
Disney Dominates The Box Office
It would take up to two years before Disney gains full control of 21st Century Fox, but the recent box office could be a look at the future of the movie industry. After the merger has been finalized, The Daily Mail reports that the company has accounted for 90% of the box office performance this weekend.
At the forefront, of course, is Star Wars: The Last Jedi which opened with $220 million. On second place is Ferdinand, an animated movie from 20th Century Fox, with $13.3 million earning. Coco, an animated movie from Disney, rounds up the top three with $10 million. Murder on the Orient Express, another movie from Fox, trails with $2.5 million.