The Walt Disney Company has dropped the Fox from its 20th Century and Searchlight logos. Disney acquired 20th Century Fox last March for $71.3 billion. The deal included their film and television studios, but not their broadcast network or Fox News, which both remained under the Rupert Murdoch-owned Fox Corp.
Disney appears to have big plans regarding the integration of the 20th Century and its sister studio, Searchlight, as well as for the associated properties. In the wake of under-performing Fox films post-merger, Disney has devised plans to reboot a handful of well-known Fox franchises to start fresh. Recognizing what Fox has done well, such as A Miracle on 34th Street, which Disney attached their logo to on Disney Plus, Disney will move forward with the aforementioned studios. The most recent re-branding and is even more symbolic of this planned reset.
The 20th Century Fox title card has appeared some major films over the past 85 years of cinema. It’s recognizable logo and theme has been attached to the likes of Avatar, Titanic, Home Alone, Alien, Planet of the Apes, and Star Wars: A New Hope. According to Variety, outside of the removal of Fox from the logo marks, the logo, title card, and the theme will remain the same. Regarding the name change, “20th Century Fox” will appear as “20th Century Studios” and “Fox Searchlight” will now be “Searchlight Pictures," although the logos and their respective names have yet to be changed on social media. No decision has yet been made to change the names associated with the television assets, 20th Century Fox Television or Fox 21 Television Studios, but discussions are being had.
The upcoming dramedy, Downhill, starring Will Ferrell and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, will be the first movie featuring the Searchlight Pictures logo, and the Harrison Ford-led adventure The Call of the Wild will be the first for 20th Century Studios. This phasing out of Fox began a month ago when Fox Searchlight emails dropped the Fox and fox-dot-com addresses became searchlightpictures-dot-com. The re-branding not only makes sense from a creative standpoint, but a business one as well.
Interestingly enough, Disney could still use the Fox name if they wanted to; however, the fact that the remaining subsidiaries of Fox Corporation such as Fox Entertainment, Fox Sports, and Fox News all still use it makes this a less-than-desired option. Keeping Fox attached to their newest assets would not only be confusing but would not vibe with Disney’s family-friendly brand, as Disney no doubt wants to distance themselves from any controversy surrounding brands like Fox News. Regardless, these name changes bring the end of an era — 20th Century Fox's cinematic reign is officially over as The Walt Disney Company continues its domination.
Source: Variety
