Did Disney Buy a Dud With Fox? The $71 Billion Deal Is Weighing Bob Iger Down

The box-office success of ”Avatar: The Way of Water“ may disguise the problems the Hollywood megadeal brought

Was Disney right to pay $71 billion for Fox’s entertainment empire? The sprawling properties it brought in-house helped fuel Disney+ and have given returning CEO Bob Iger a much-needed box office hit with “Avatar: The Way of Water” as he settles back into his old chair.

But investors are scrutinizing spending much more closely than they used to. Disney still carries a hefty debt load from the Fox deal and Iger’s rebound tenure has a time limit as he searches once again for a successor.

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Scott Mendelson

Before joining The Wrap, Scott Mendelson got his industry start in 2008 with a self-piloted film blog titled "Mendelson's Memos." In 2013, he was recruited to write for Forbes.com where he wrote almost exclusively for nearly a decade. In that time he published copious in-depth analytical and editorialized entertainment industry articles specializing in (but not exclusively focused upon) theatrical box office. A well-known industry pundit, Mendelson has appeared on numerous podcasts and been featured as a talking head on NPR, CNN, Fox and BBC.