Disney on Tuesday announced it had purchased Lucasfilm and the rights to all of its entertainment properties, including the “Star Wars” franchise, for $4.05 billion from Lucasfilm’s owner and creator George Lucas.
As Disney wrote in its press release:
We plan to release the first new Star Wars film in 2015, and then plan to release one film every two to three years. These films will be released and distributed as part of our target slate of 8-10 live-action films per year, and will augment Disney’s already strong creative pipeline for many years to come.
The move comes three years after Disney acquired Marvel (as in Marvel Comics) for $4 billion in 2009. That acquisition has since proved lucrative, with Marvel releasing hit movies such as “The Avengers.”
