REEL NEWS IN REVIEW Disney to Acquire Large Chunks of Fox The Hollywood studio system sees a big shift with Disney’s purchase of large parts of 21st Century Fox for a reported $66.1 billion. The boards and stockholders from both companies have approved the deal, which is expected to take between 12 and 18 months to officially close. Once it does, Disney will own Fox’s film and TV studios, on top of several cable channels (not including Fox News) and sports networks. Among the properties that are set to join the Disney sandbox are Deadpool, Avatar, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four. Disney chairman and CEO Rob Iger, who was expected to step down in 2019, has re-upped his contract through the end of 2021. Cineworld to Purchase Regal Entertainment Another big deal is going down in the exhibition sphere. Regal Entertainment Group and Cineworld Group have announced their intention to enter into a merger that will see Cineworld, the U.K.’s largest exhibitor, acquire Regal for $5.9 billion. Said Regal CEO Amy Miles in a statement, “We believe this partnership with Cineworld will enhance Regal’s ability to deliver a premium moviegoing experience for customers and further build upon our strategy of introducing innovative concepts and premium amenities designed to enhance the value of our theatre assets.” Saudi Ar abia Legalizes Cinemas After nearly four decades, Saudi Arabia has legalized movie theatres. Into the breach runs AMC, which has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with the country’s Public Investment Fund as a means of exploring future collaboration. Per CEO and president Adam Aron, “Saudi Arabia represents a lucrative business opportunity for AMC Entertainment, and no one does the cinema experience on a global scale better than AMC.” Saudi Arabia’s theatrical exhibition industry is expected to grow to a value of $1 billion. Academy Board Approves Standards of Conduct In the wake of a wave of sexualharassment revelations, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has approved “Standards of Conduct” designed to stop those among AMPAS’ 8,427 members who would “abuse their status, power or influence in a manner that violates recognized standards of decency. The Academy is categorically opposed to any form of abuse, harassment or discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, age, religion or nationality.” Those who violate these standards will be subject to disciplinary action, potentially including suspension or expulsion. Holly wood Execs Announce Anti-Har assment Commission Elsewhere in Hollywood, two dozen entertainment executives—among them Disney/Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy, Disney’s Bob Iger, Warner Bros.’ Kevin Tsujihara and Netflix’s Ted Sarandos— have formed the Commission on Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality in the Workplace, to be chaired by lawyer/ whistleblower Anita Hill. Said Hill in a statement, “We will be focusing on issues ranging from power disparity, equality and fairness, safety, sexualharassment guidelines, education and training, reporting and enforcement, ongoing research and data collection. It is time to end the culture of silence.” IMAX and Fox Renew Partnership In slightly less groundbreaking news for Fox than the Disney acquisition, 20th Century Fox <strong>Film</strong> and IMAX have signed a deal to release five Fox films. One of those films, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, already came and went; the other four (The Darkest Mind, The New Mutants, X-Men: Dark Phoenix and Gambit) extend through 2019. Subscriptions: 1-877-496-5246 • filmjournal.com/subscribe • subscriptions@filmjournal.com Editorial inquiries: kevin.lally@filmjournal.com • Ad inquiries: robin.klamfoth@filmexpos.com Reprint inquiries: fji@wrightsmedia.com • 1-877-652-5295 825 Eighth Ave., 29th Floor New York, NY 10019 Tele: (212) 493-4097 Publisher/Editor Robert Sunshine President, <strong>Film</strong> Expo Group Andrew Sunshine Executive Editor Kevin Lally Associate Editor Rebecca Pahle Art Director Rex Roberts Senior Account Executive, Advertising & Sponsorships Robin Klamfoth Exhibition/Business Editor Andreas Fuchs Concessions Editor Larry Etter Far East Bureau Thomas Schmid CEO, <strong>Film</strong> Expo Group Theo Kingma FJI ONLINE Visit www.filmjournal.com for breaking industry news, FJI’s Screener blog and reviews Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/ filmjournalinternational Follow us on Twitter @film_journal for updates on our latest content <strong>Film</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> International © <strong>2018</strong> by <strong>Film</strong> Expo Group, LLC. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of the publisher. 6 FILMJOURNAL.COM / JANUARY <strong>2018</strong> 003-006.indd 6 12/20/17 8:27 AM
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