'Star Wars' creator George Lucas has largely retired from filmmaking since he sold his Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012 for $4.1 billion in stock and cash. Lucas is now focused on philanthropy: his charitable family foundation has more than $1 billion in assets.
Disney acquired Lucasfilm, the production company founded by Lucas, on October 30, 2012 for a reported $4.05 billion. The agreement included the rights to all existing Star Wars films, as well as the rights to create new movies, TV shows, and other merchandise based on the brand.
George Lucas sold Star Wars to Disney back in 2012 for $4 billion. In a 2020 interview, Lucas revealed his reason for selling. For more Disney news, you can now preview the first five minutes of Marvel's Secret Invasion. Also, here's when the first episode of Ahsoka is set to premiere.
The majority of Lucas's fortune is derived from the sale of Lucasfilm and special effects operation Industrial Light & Magic to Disney in October 2012. He received $2.2 billion in cash and 37.1 million shares of Disney in the transaction, according a March 2013 bond prospectus.
Does George Lucas contradict himself when it comes to the Force?
Who is the richest character in Star Wars?
It's known that Palpatine is the wealthiest character to exist in the Star Wars galaxy, but Count Dooku's wealth had him beat during the Clone Wars. When looking for the wealthiest character in Star Wars, it doesn't take long to realize Palpatine in his prime had more wealth than anybody could possibly imagine.
Disney acquired “Toy Story” creator Pixar in 2006 for $7.4 billion. The company became the owner of the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” franchises following the purchase of Lucasfilm in 2012.
The deal, worth $4.05 billion in cash and stock, was announced Oct. 30, 2012 and marked the start of a new era in the Star Wars franchise. Disney would make back that investment and more in just a few short years.
There would likely be major regulatory issues, and media mega mergers have a long track record of abject failure and value destruction. Apple's history suggests it stays away from large M&A, and there's little evidence Apple wants to buy Disney.
Between running Lucasfilm, an effects company Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), self-financing the future Star Wars installments to retain creative control, and ensuring that The Empire Strikes Back would be made properly, Lucas knew that he wouldn't be able to give the film the attention it needed.
In some ways, the answer is obvious: both parties see an opportunity to make money. Lucas gains billions of dollars in return for a company that has developed perhaps as far as he can; Disney gains the rights to exploit some of the most valuable media properties of the last 30 years.
However, he's far more interested in philanthropy now than he is film making. He's currently busy building an art museum in California and has a 9 year old daughter to look after (even though he himself is 78!). He has hobbies now too - reportedly, he spends most of his free time in his garage.
11 years ago today, Disney bought Lucasfilm - including Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Willow. Under CEO Bob Iger, Disney became known for a series of dramatic purchases. Disney acquired Pixar in 2006, Marvel in 2010, and on to Lucasfilm in 2012.
On December 18, 2012, Lucasfilm Ltd. converted from a corporation to a limited liability company (LLC), changing its name to Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC in the process. On December 21, 2012, Disney completed the acquisition and Lucasfilm became a wholly owned subsidiary of Disney.
Total debt on the balance sheet as of September 2023 : $46.43 B. According to Walt Disney's latest financial reports the company's total debt is $46.43 B. A company's total debt is the sum of all current and non-current debts.
Solo: A Star Wars Story grossed $213.8 million in the United States and Canada, and $179.4 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $393.2 million. With an estimated production budget of $275 million, it was reported that the film needed to gross at least $500 million worldwide to break even.
Star Wars had a very small budget compared to the later films, costing $74 million to make but earning nearly $2 billion at the domestic box office. This means the final profit was around $1.8 billion, making Star Wars one of the most successful movies of all time.
After months of negotiations and an audit to determine the value of the Star Wars franchise, Disney agreed to buy Lucasfilm for $4.05 billion. The deal was officially announced on October 30, 2012, with Lucas signing the company to Disney in a press release.
The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) announced today that it will acquire the 33% stake in Hulu, LLC held by Comcast Corp.'s (NASDAQ: CMCSA) NBC Universal (NBCU), following Comcast's November 1 exercise of its right under the put/call arrangement between the two companies.
It is not known whether Mark Hamill still gets royalties from Star Wars. For the original movie, he had a deal that earned him a ¼ percent cut of the backend profits in addition to his $650,000 salary. However, for the original trilogy, he did not receive royalties from the video or television releases.
Taking ticket price inflation into account, the original 1977 Star Wars film is still the most successful one. While at the time “A New Hope” generated $775 million in worldwide box office earnings, that translates to more than $3.5 billion adjusted to today's ticket prices.
According to an interview that came out shortly after the release of the original Star Wars in 1977, the actor's agent had negotiated that Alec Guinness receive 2% of the royalties that the movie made.
