Disney removes 'Fox' from 20th Century Studios and Searchlight Pictures

LOS ANGELES: Disney is making its much-publicised acquisition of 21st Century Fox official with the studio dropping the name "Fox" from the brand.

In a historic deal last year, Disney bought 21st Century Fox assets for $71.3 billion.

According to Variety, the 20th Century Fox film studio will be rechristened as 20th Century Studios, and Fox Searchlight Pictures will become Searchlight Pictures.

However, in case of the small screen, there is no certainty about the rebranding of production units 20th Century Fox Television and Fox 21 Television Studios.

Discussions about a name change are underway, but no consensus has emerged, according to a source close to the situation. "I think the Fox name means Murdoch, and that is toxic," an insider said in a reference to media mogul Rupert Murdoch whose holding company News Corporation acquired 20th Century Fox in 1985.

Also changing are the email addresses for the Searchlight staffers, with the fox.com address being replaced with a searchlightpictures.com address. The Twitter handles of 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight have also been altered now.

The changes are also visible on the poster of Searchlight's next film "Downhill", with Julia Louis-dreyfus and Will Ferrell, where the credits begin with "Searchlight Pictures Presents". The film will be the first Searchlight release to debut with the new

logo. "Call of the Wild," an upcoming family film, will be released under the 20th Century banner, without Fox. The

logos will be updated. The most conspicuous change is the erasure of the word "Fox" from the logo marks. Otherwise, the signature elements swirling klieg lights, mono

lith, triumphal fanfare will remain the same.