Posted in: Disney+, Hulu, Opinion, streaming, TV, TV | Tagged: disney, disney plus, hulu, opinion, The Orville

The Orville: Disney, Comcast Could Kick Off Hulu Moves This Week

The week could be an important one regarding the future of Seth MacFarlane's The Orville, with Disney & Comcast able to start Hulu talks.

Published Tue, 31 Oct 2023 14:37:09 -0500

by Ray Flook

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Article Summary

Disney & Comcast could begin the process this week that would see Disney buyout Comcast's stake in Hulu.
Comcast's stake in Hulu could be bought out by Disney, for a speculated $9B-$19B - based on early reports.
Disney and Comcast's Hulu moves could end up determining the future of Seth MacFarlane's 'The Orville'.
Economic stability at Hulu could result in a clearer programming focus that benefits show like 'The Orville' and others.

Back in September, we reported on how Comcast & The Walt Disney Company were looking to wrap up The Mouse's expected buyout of Comcast's one-third stake in Hulu. Noting that both sides "wanted to get this behind us," Comcast CEO Brian Roberts revealed that an agreement was reached during the previous week to move the timeline from January 2024 to (at that point) the fall. Well, it turns out that the date is now at hand: November 1st – tomorrow. What that means is that Comcast can either pull the trigger on Disney buying out its stake in the streaming service, or Disney can pull the trigger – requiring Comcast to sell its shares. So what each company does is hire an investment bank to determine the value of the streamer – and if the two values are within 10% of each other, then the average of the two becomes Hulu's price tag. But what if they're not? Then, a third investment bank comes in to do its own assessment – with Hulu's final price tag being the average of the third investment bank's value and the original value closest to the third bank's value. Early estimates have The Mouse paying anywhere from $9B-$19B to secure full ownership of the streamer. Okay – got all of that? Good – because that makes this Wednesday a possibly very important day for fans of Seth MacFarlane's The Orville.

When it comes to why a series does or doesn't get picked up, the reasons can vary greatly. In the case of The Orville, the still-ongoing SAG-AFTRA strikes, MacFarlane's growing production responsibilities, and the difficulties in locking in a cast that's being eyed for other projects. But when it comes to the "bigger picture," the question marks surrounding Disney, Comcast, and Hulu could've also been a factor when it came to giving the series a green light (especially if multiple seasons are being considered). Since last year, the streaming services – and the media companies that own many of them – have faced some harsh financial realities when it came to how they have been conducting their streaming businesses. That led to programming and employment cuts across the board at companies like Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and others. If Disney and Comcast can bring some stability to the Hulu situation, then we're one step closer to the streaming service being focused on from a programming standpoint. And that could put us one step closer to a final answer on the fate of The Orville. Stay tuned…

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