The tenuous partnership between Sony and Disney has always made fans nervous. After all, Sony still retains the film rights to one of Marvel’s most popular franchises, Spider-Man. But the two are taking another step forward, as they’ve agreed to a massive movie licensing agreement that will bring Sony movies to Disney+ and Disney’s other platforms.
The deal will include the popular Spider-Man films, as well as other Marvel properties. The films will be sent out across Disney’s many platforms, which includes Disney+, Hulu, FX Networks, ABC, Disney Channels and Freeform. The deal, which is likely a multi-million dollar agreement, will run through 2026.
“This landmark multi-year, platform-agnostic agreement guarantees the team at Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution a tremendous amount of flexibility and breadth of programming possibilities to leverage Sony’s rich slate of award-winning action and family films across our direct-to-consumer services and linear channels,” said Chuck Saftler, head of business operations for ABC, Freeform, FX Networks and Acquisitions for Disney’s Media and Entertainment Distribution. “This is a win for fans, who will benefit from the ability to access the very best content from two of Hollywood’s most prolific studios across a multitude of viewing platforms and experiences.”
“This groundbreaking agreement reconfirms the unique and enduring value of our movies to film lovers and the platforms and networks that serve them,” said Keith Le Goy, president of worldwide distribution and networks for Sony Pictures Entertainment. “We are thrilled to team up with Disney on delivering our titles to their viewers and subscribers. This agreement cements a key piece of our film distribution strategy, which is to maximize the value of each of our films, by making them available to consumers across all windows with a wide range of key partners.”
The deal comes in the wake of Sony’s other major deal with Netflix to stream Sony Pictures’ theatrical releases in a pay TV window, which will also begin in 2022 in the U.S. This gives them the first look for streaming rights for Sony’s new movies and items already in their catalogue.
