{"id":1856853,"date":"2026-03-31T13:46:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T10:46:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1856853"},"modified":"2026-03-31T13:46:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T10:46:13","slug":"disney-could-be-interested-in-buying-fortnite-maker-epic-games-but-not-everyones-on-board-with-the-idea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1856853","title":{"rendered":"Disney could be interested in buying Fortnite maker Epic Games, but not everyone&#8217;s on board with the idea"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/fortnite\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Fortnite<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">Disney could be interested in buying Fortnite maker Epic Games, but not everyone&#8217;s on board with the idea<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">New endgame.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/FvG7O-fWYAATIuu.png?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Fortnite Star Wars event\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"FvG7O-fWYAATIuu.png\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"321\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Epic Games\/Disney<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fran Ruiz avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/fran-j-ruiz-author.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Fran Ruiz avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"fran-j-ruiz-author.png\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/fran-ruiz\">Fran Ruiz<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Contributor<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-03-31T13:46:13+00:00\">March 31, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/disney-could-be-looking-into-buying-fortnite-developer-epic-games?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          13 comments<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"a8888b6d-5bc0-480f-a9ef-1f57b9dc36eb\" data-name=\"Fortnite\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Fortnite\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Fortnite\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Fortnite\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Fortnite\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Fortnite\" title=\"Follow Fortnite\"><br \/>\n  Follow Fortnite<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/fortnite\">Fortnite<\/a> maker Epic Games has had a rough start to the year, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/fortnite-still-biggest-game-in-the-world-but-playtime-dropped-in-2025\">Fortnite&#8217;s players dropping noticeably<\/a>, and now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/fortnite-maker-epic-cuts-over-1000-jobs-as-battle-royale-suffers-slump\">over 1,000 jobs being cut<\/a> as a result. Now, there&#8217;s talk of entertainment giant Disney looking to buy the company.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Fortnite - Official Chapter 7 Season 2: Showdown Teaser Trailer\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vKpGi_39028?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/vKpGi_39028\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Fortnite &#8211; Official Chapter 7 Season 2: Showdown Teaser Trailer<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<p><a class=\"button video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=vKpGi_39028\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figure>\n<p>At least that&#8217;s what tech reporter Alex Heath from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/alex-heath\">The Verge<\/a> suggested during his appearance on podcast <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=K5yRAF5MWf4\">The Town with Matt Belloni<\/a> on 25th March (hat tip to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/disney-reportedly-keen-on-buying-fortnite-developer-epic-games-but-waiting-for-right-moment\">IGN<\/a>). &#8220;I know for a fact there are senior executives in Disney who want them to buy Epic and are just waiting for that moment,&#8221; Heath said. The reality might be more complex though, as he added there are people near the top &#8220;who think it&#8217;s a bad idea.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While this doesn&#8217;t instantly mean Epic is looking to sell, or that any kind of deal would materialise, it does raise an interesting possibility. Since <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/former-valve-writer-hits-out-at-epic-games-layoffs-its-not-like-theyre-a-publicly-traded-company-its-not-like-theres-some-need-to-hit-the-stock-market-thing-this-is-tim\">the company isn&#8217;t publicly traded<\/a>, &#8220;Epic is a founder-controlled company,&#8221; Heath reminded listeners. If Disney made a move and wanted to acquire the developer, Fortnite, and its digital storefront, its founder and outspoken CEO Tim Sweeney would be making the final decision. Of course, it&#8217;s hard to imagine Epic suddenly calling it quits, but if the downward trend in player retention and spending that was felt in 2025 and into 2026 continues, that might leave room for things to change.<\/p>\n<p>While Sweeney has gone to &#8220;bat against&#8221; other corporate giants like Apple and Google in the past, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/epic-games-boss-tim-sweeney-blasts-bs-report-suggesting-fortnites-mysterious-disney-mode-hampered-by-slow-decision-making\">Sweeney has praised<\/a> the &#8220;speed&#8221; of collaborations between Epic and Disney. As a reminder, the latter <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/disney-buys-15-billion-stake-in-epic-games-to-create-expansive-universe-within-fortnite\">made a $1.5 billion investment<\/a> in the developer in 2024. This supposedly kickstarted work on a Disney-led mode within Fortnite that would be considered a &#8220;virtual Disneyland&#8221; and a major gaming platform for the company.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Earlier this week, Kevin Mayer, former Disney executive and co-CEO at Candle Media, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/video\/2026\/03\/18\/disney-wont-look-the-same-in-five-years-at-all-says-candle-medias-kevin-mayer.html\">told CNBC<\/a> &#8220;Epic or some other video game asset would be a great addition to The Walt Disney Company&#8217;s asset base&#8221; following Josh D&#8217;Amaro taking over the CEO role. As pointed out by IGN&#8217;s report, above, D&#8217;Amaro was among the people &#8220;who strongly backed the company&#8217;s investment in Fortnite.&#8221; All together, it raises genuine questions about the future of one of video games&#8217; most influential companies.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/fortnite\">Fortnite<\/a> maker Epic Games has had a rough start to the year, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/fortnite-still-biggest-game-in-the-world-but-playtime-dropped-in-2025\">Fortnite&#8217;s players dropping noticeably<\/a>, and now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/fortnite-maker-epic-cuts-over-1000-jobs-as-battle-royale-suffers-slump\">over 1,000 jobs being cut<\/a> as a result. Now, there&#8217;s talk of entertainment giant Disney looking to buy the company.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Fortnite - Official Chapter 7 Season 2: Showdown Teaser Trailer\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vKpGi_39028?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/vKpGi_39028\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Fortnite &#8211; Official Chapter 7 Season 2: Showdown Teaser Trailer<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<p><a class=\"button video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=vKpGi_39028\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figure>\n<p>At least that&#8217;s what tech reporter Alex Heath from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/alex-heath\">The Verge<\/a> suggested during his appearance on podcast <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=K5yRAF5MWf4\">The Town with Matt Belloni<\/a> on 25th March (hat tip to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/disney-reportedly-keen-on-buying-fortnite-developer-epic-games-but-waiting-for-right-moment\">IGN<\/a>). &#8220;I know for a fact there are senior executives in Disney who want them to buy Epic and are just waiting for that moment,&#8221; Heath said. The reality might be more complex though, as he added there are people near the top &#8220;who think it&#8217;s a bad idea.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While this doesn&#8217;t instantly mean Epic is looking to sell, or that any kind of deal would materialise, it does raise an interesting possibility. Since <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/former-valve-writer-hits-out-at-epic-games-layoffs-its-not-like-theyre-a-publicly-traded-company-its-not-like-theres-some-need-to-hit-the-stock-market-thing-this-is-tim\">the company isn&#8217;t publicly traded<\/a>, &#8220;Epic is a founder-controlled company,&#8221; Heath reminded listeners. If Disney made a move and wanted to acquire the developer, Fortnite, and its digital storefront, its founder and outspoken CEO Tim Sweeney would be making the final decision. Of course, it&#8217;s hard to imagine Epic suddenly calling it quits, but if the downward trend in player retention and spending that was felt in 2025 and into 2026 continues, that might leave room for things to change.<\/p>\n<p>While Sweeney has gone to &#8220;bat against&#8221; other corporate giants like Apple and Google in the past, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/epic-games-boss-tim-sweeney-blasts-bs-report-suggesting-fortnites-mysterious-disney-mode-hampered-by-slow-decision-making\">Sweeney has praised<\/a> the &#8220;speed&#8221; of collaborations between Epic and Disney. As a reminder, the latter <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/disney-buys-15-billion-stake-in-epic-games-to-create-expansive-universe-within-fortnite\">made a $1.5 billion investment<\/a> in the developer in 2024. This supposedly kickstarted work on a Disney-led mode within Fortnite that would be considered a &#8220;virtual Disneyland&#8221; and a major gaming platform for the company.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Earlier this week, Kevin Mayer, former Disney executive and co-CEO at Candle Media, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/video\/2026\/03\/18\/disney-wont-look-the-same-in-five-years-at-all-says-candle-medias-kevin-mayer.html\">told CNBC<\/a> &#8220;Epic or some other video game asset would be a great addition to The Walt Disney Company&#8217;s asset base&#8221; following Josh D&#8217;Amaro taking over the CEO role. As pointed out by IGN&#8217;s report, above, D&#8217;Amaro was among the people &#8220;who strongly backed the company&#8217;s investment in Fortnite.&#8221; All together, it raises genuine questions about the future of one of video games&#8217; most influential companies.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News Fortnite Disney could be interested in buying Fortnite maker Epic Games, but not everyone&#8217;s on board with the idea New endgame. Image credit: Epic Games\/Disney News by Fran Ruiz Contributor Published on March 31, 2026 13 comments Follow Fortnite Fortnite maker Epic Games has had a rough start to the year, with Fortnite&#8217;s [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-1856853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1856853"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856853\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1856853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1856853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1856853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}