Disney will invest $1.5 billion in Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, the company announced Wednesday. As part of the initiative, Disney and Epic Games will create an entirely new “universe of gaming and entertainment” over the next few years, Disney said in a statement. statement.
“Our exciting new relationship with Epic Games will bring together Disney's beloved brands and franchises with the wildly popular Fortnite into a transformational new game and entertainment universe,” Disney CEO Bob Iger wrote in the release. “This marks Disney’s largest entry into the video game world and provides significant opportunities for growth and expansion.”
Players will be able to “play, watch, purchase and interact with content, characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, Avatar, and much more” in the new entertainment universe, which will be powered by Epic’s flagship Unreal Engine. Disney currently uses Unreal Engine to produce films, video games and content used in Disney theme parks around the world. It has also previously partnered with Epic Games to bring characters from Marvel, TronAnd Star Wars has Fortnite.
Neither company has revealed what the valuation of Epic Games, a private company, would be after Disney's investment. Chinese tech conglomerate Tencent currently owns 40% of Epic Games, while Sony owns just over 5%.
“(We) are collaborating on something entirely new to build a persistent, open, interoperable ecosystem that will bring the Disney and Fortnite communities together,” Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, said in the release. “Disney was one of the first companies to believe in the potential of bringing their worlds together with ours in Fortnite(.)”