It can be confusing to know who owns what these days.
Companies are constantly buying each other.
With TV shows, it’s even more confusing.
The rights to a show can get sold multiple times throughout its life.
This has left many people wondering who owns the TV show, Family Guy.
Is Family Guy Owned By Disney?
Yes, Family Guy is currently owned by Disney.
Disney acquired Family Guy on March 20, 2019.
The company didn’t acquire Family Guy as a single show but rather as a part of a company acquisition.
Disney acquired 21st Century Fox, which is the company that produces Family Guy, along with many other similar shows.
By buying Fox, Disney now owns all of the shows that Fox produced.
Owning Fox gives Disney all of these entertainment assets:
-The Simpsons
-Family Guy
-X-Men
-Planet of the Apes
-Alien
-Predator
-The X-Files
-American Horror Story
-Ice Age
-Rio
-Home Alone
-The Sound of Music
-Miracle on 34th Street
-Titanic
-Avatar pic.twitter.com/cpTFGLGu3u— Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) March 20, 2019
While Disney did buy the Intellectual Property (IP) and overall rights, they don’t own the Fox TV network.
However, they do have the right to license non-local shows.
That includes Family Guy, along with a host of other similar adult cartoons.
Family Guy is an adult animated TV show.
It premiered its first episode on January 31, 1999.
Since the show premiered, it has maintained a high level of popularity.
Over the course of the show’s lifetime, it has been nominated for 12 primetime Emmy Awards.
Is Disney Going To Cancel Family Guy?
With Disney buying Fox, there is concern from fans about their favorite shows being canceled.
Though Disney has the right to run 21st Century Fox in whatever way they like, it doesn’t seem that Family Guy is at risk of getting canceled.
After all, Disney bought the network because of its success.
It wouldn’t make sense to get rid of its most popular shows.
Is Family Guy Going To Leave Fox?
Some comments by Family Guy Creator Seth MacFarlane have left fans wondering whether the show is going to leave Fox entirely. MacFarlane tweeted:
“Tucker Carlson’s latest opinion piece once again makes me wish Family Guy was on any other network. Look, Fox, we both know this marriage isn’t working anymore. The sex is only once a year, I don’t get along with your mother, and well… I’ve been having an affair with NBC.”
Tucker Carlson’s latest opinion piece once again makes me wish Family Guy was on any other network. Look, Fox, we both know this marriage isn’t working anymore. The sex is only once a year, I don’t get along with your mother, and well… I’ve been having an affair with NBC.
— Seth MacFarlane (@SethMacFarlane) August 1, 2021
Many fans have suggested moving to another network owned by Disney.
While Disney has been renewed for a 21st season on Fox, MacFarlane has shown signs of wanting to move away from the network entirely.
He has signed a contract with NBC to make content for them, which is part of what he referenced in the tweet.
Why Is Disney Not Streaming Family Guy?
Despite the name, Family Guy is not a very family-friendly show.
This is likely one of the big reasons Disney has not brought Family Guy onto the Disney+ platform.
Disney has set a limit on adult content on their platform.
For example, the company made a decision that there would be no R-rated content on the platform.
Considering the kind of jokes Family Guy tends to make, it’s hard to categorize the show as purely PG-13.
What Does Seth Macfarlane Think Of Disney Buying Family Guy?
Seth MacFarlane has expressed distaste for Fox and their support of controversial political pundits, but what does he think of Disney buying out almost all of his shows?
Well, he might be happier working with Disney than Fox, but he’s still managed to make fun of the family-friendly corporation.
After the acquisition, Family Guy aired an episode called “Disney’s The Reboot.”
This was a very “meta” episode where Family Guy basically talked about itself and the Disney acquisition.
In the episode, Disney decides to refresh the Family Guy show by creating three different reboots.
The three reboot pilot episodes are then shown to focus groups which tear the episodes apart.
The episode isn’t very hard on Disney.
Perhaps part of this is because Family Guy wanted to test the waters and determine what they could get away with.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Family Guy writer Alec Sulkin described the process of creating the Disney episode.
He said that there had been an increase in emails making sure that different parts of the episodes were cleared with higher-ups.
Overall, though, he indicated that the production of the show hadn’t changed much and the tone and content were set to continue uninterrupted.
Will Family Guy Get New Opportunities Because Of The Disney Acquisition?
While some fans might be nervous to learn about the acquisition because of how family-friendly Disney is, others might see this as a potential opportunity for the show.
However, it is unlikely that Disney is going to change Family Guy much, even in terms of new opportunities.
Disney has a history of fiercely protecting the different brands they acquire and create.
This is part of the reason they aren’t putting every show they own onto the Disney+ platform.
Creating different streaming services for different types of content is a way to protect the brands of different shows and keep them separated.
Another reason the show will likely remain largely unchanged is that it is still being produced in the same studio.
Disney knows that the value of its acquisition lies in the fact these studios already do good work, and they try to keep the changes minimal when possible.
However, it might also result in some forms of limitation that Family Guy didn’t face before.
Richard Appel, a Family Guy writer, gave one example of this in an interview with E!, Apple said that if the show asked for a Starwars crossover, they would likely be told no.
He also points out that 10 years ago, they were doing Star Wars episodes with the blessing of Lucasfilm.
Since Disney owns both brands now, it is likely they will want to keep them separate.
Will Disney Change The Simpsons?
Unlike Family Guy or American Dad, The Simpsons did make it on the Disney+ platform.
This might make fans wonder if the show will be censored by Disney to make it more family friendly.
Family Guy producer Michael Price gave an interview with CBR in which he confirmed that the show won’t be censored even after being placed on the more family-friendly platform of Disney+.
Is Family Guy On Netflix?
Family Guy is on Netflix.
You won’t find the entire show there, though—only the first eight seasons.
If you already have Netflix, this means you can enjoy eight seasons of Family Guy without any additional cost.
Is Family Guy On Disney+?
Yes, since Family Guy is owned by Disney, it is on Disney+ in some countries!
Whether Disney+ includes Family Guy depends on the country you are in. In the U.K., Australia, and Canada, Disney + includes Family Guy.
If you do live in one of these countries you are in luck.
Unlike Netflix, you are not just limited to the first eight seasons.
If you do not live in one of the countries that include Star content, you will have to pay for the Disney+ bundle that includes Star if you want to watch Family Guy.
Does Hulu Have Family Guy?
Hulu does include the entire Family Guy series.
This is great news if you want to be able to watch the show from beginning to end.
Hulu also offers a free trial for 30 days.
If you wanted to watch the show for free, you could simply sign up for the free trial and then cancel before the 30-day period was up!
If you do want to try to watch all of Family Guy for free in one month, you might want to set aside some big chunks of time in your schedule.
To watch every episode of the show would take 165 hours.
That is 5.5 hours every day over a 30-day period! There are currently 389 episodes of Family Guy.
That means if you watch one episode a day, it will take you over a year to complete the entire series!
Is Family Guy On Live TV?
Yes, if you have cable television, you can watch Family Guy on Fox.
New episodes typically air Sundays at 9:30/8:30c.
Fox will announce when the next season of Family Guy will premiere.
Can I Record Family Guy?
If you have a cable subscription that allows you to watch Family Guy live and your cable box lets you record shows, you can record Family Guy to watch later.
Most modern cable boxes let you schedule recordings of shows ahead of time.
You can set your TV to record each episode as it premieres.
Some cable subscriptions allow you to watch any episode of a show whenever you want!
You can check your TV to see if it has this feature.
Similar Shows Owned By Disney
When Disney bought Fox, it caused quite a stir in the adult cartoon industry.
Many fans of Family Guy and similar shows were worried about how Disney’s ownership would affect their favorite shows.
Does Disney Own American Dad?
American Dad is another adult TV show created by Seth MacFarlane.
Just like Family Guy, Disney now owns the rights to American Dad.
However, American Dad won’t be available on Disney+.
In the United States, you still have to get Hulu to stream American Dad.
If you are a big Seth MacFarlane fan, spending some money on a Hulu subscription might be worth it!
Does Disney Own The Simpsons?
Disney does own The Simpsons, just as it owns Family Guy.
Though The Simpsons is another adult cartoon, it is generally more family-friendly than Family Guy or American Dad.
Because of this, Disney has opted to have The Simpsons join Disney+.
Does Disney Own The Cleveland Show?
Disney does own The Cleveland Show.
The Cleveland Show is another animated TV show created by Seth MacFarlane.
It ran between 2009 and 2019.
While The Cleveland Show is not available to watch on Disney+, you can watch it on STAR which is an add-on you can purchase within Disney+.
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