It’s difficult to work in the entertainment industry and not come across a Disney company. Disney owns nearly everything entertainment. Don’t believe me?
We gathered some info from the world wide web to see if our suspicions were true. We found a nice little infographic used on a few sites, to drive home the company’s colossal ownership.
What Does Disney Own?
What companies does Disney own?
They can’t possibly own everything. But then why do I see Disney logos everywhere? I always assumed bigger networks stand on their own two feet. Does Disney own ABC? Marvel?
We’re grateful to Title Max, for creating this epic graphic. But below it is a list a little less intimidating.
We made a list based on the data that was floating in the ether, to give you an accurate assessment of the company’s magnitude.
What Does Disney Own?
Networks and production companies
- ABC
- ESPN (80% stake)
- Marvel
- Lucasfilm
- A&E (50% equity holding with Hearst Corporation)
- The History Channel (50% equity holding with Hearst Corporation)
- Lifetime (50% equity holding with Hearst Corporation)
- Pixar
- Hollywood Records
- Vice Media (10% stake)
- Core Publishing
That’s kind of aggressive isn’t it? Well, there’s more...much more. Disney owns brands too. Don’t forget about those. Here’s another list of all the brands Disney owns...
Disney Owns What?
Brands and franchises
Owning companies is one thing but owning intellectual property can bring endless opportunities. And for Disney, who has dominated franchising and merchandising for decades, it makes perfect sense to bring these properties into the fold.
Star Wars
George Lucas sold his company, Lucasfilm, to Disney for over $4 billion. Naturally, to make good on their investments, Disney restarted the Star Wars franchise to mostly stellar success.
The Dark Side of the Mouse
The Muppets
Another beloved property now under the purview of Disney is The Muppets. You would think that The Muppets would find a natural home at the House of Mouse but no everyone feels the same. Here's Frank Oz (a longtime fixture in the Muppet crew, and voice of Miss Piggy) on how he feels about the new direction Disney has taken the brand.
Frank Oz and his thoughts on the Disney acquisition
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (but not the X-Men — yet!)
Certainly one of the most lucrative acquisitions Disney has made in the last few years was Marvel. The MCU, as it's called, is the most successful film franchise of all time — and showing no signs of slowing.
Disney Rules to Follow
Disney Princesses/Princes
Of course, we shouldn't forget properties that Disney has created themselves. The Disney Princes and Princesses are still part of the family. Here's a clip from Ralph Breaks the Internet when we can see synergy in action (with a little dash of Star Wars for fun!).
Disney Princesses United
The Chronicles of Narnia
Of the seven books in The Chronicles of Narnia series, only 3 movies have been made at this point. Here's a trailer for Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the latest of the films produced.
Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
Pirates of the Caribbean
In 2003, Disney looked inward for new material and conjured up movies based on their own theme park rides (Pirates of the Caribbean and The Haunted Mansion). One of these began a multi-film franchise that has made billions around the world and the other did much less than that. Any guesses?
Bringing Davey Jones to life
Pixar
In Pixar's early days, Disney was just distributing their films. But in 2006, this partnership was made permanent when Disney acquired Pixar for over $7 billion. For the most part, the Pixar brand seems to be mostly untouched except for maybe the curious amount of sequels being produced these days.
Animating Toy Story 4
Winnie-the-Pooh
Disney has actually been in the business of this honey-loving bear since the early 1960s. A number of animated projects have been completed over the years, with their recent live-action hybrid Christopher Robin coming in 2018. Here's a quick look back at the origins of Pooh, including a rather surprising connection to WWI.
Winnie — short for Winnipeg!
Indiana Jones
Your favorite fedora-wearing, whip-cracking archaeologist was brought into the Disney family with the aforementioned Lucasfilm purchase. As of this writing, Disney has yet to make any more Indiana Jones movies but chances are good we'll see Dr. Jones back in action very soon.
A look back at the entire Indiana Jones saga
Also, there are plenty of companies/brands Disney owns that we just have never heard of. Feel free to take a look at that infographic again. It may actually be the size of all of the Disney Parks combined.
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I hate hate hate disney now cause they pulled the plug on Blue Sky studios, the company that made Ice Age! like jeez, just cause your a big company doesn't mean you have to shut down others, bullies!
im sick of this disney crap anyways, in fact, i wouldn't give a bucket of urine for it's future!
screw disney! you ruined Star Wars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Disney will own you too someday just wait shhhh