It’s been revealed that Disney is going to be closing down Blue Sky Studios in April.  The animation studio is behind many big animated hits for 20th Century Fox including the “Ice Age” franchise, “Rio”, “Horton Hears A Who” and most recently “Spies In Disguise”.

There has been a cloud hanging over the animation studio since the Walt Disney Company purchased 20th Century Fox, as did Disney need a third animation studio, since they already have Walt Disney Animation and Pixar.

According to Deadline, there are 450 employees affected by the studio’s closure and Disney will be working with the employees at the Greenwich, CT based animation house to explore open positions at the other internal studios within Disney.  But the other animation studios won’t be absorbing Blue Sky Studios employees and operations.

In a statement, a Disney spokesperson told Deadline:

“Given the current economic realities, after much consideration and evaluation, we have made the difficult decision to close filmmaking operations at Blue Sky Studios.”

Blue Sky Studios are currently working on a Disney+ Exclusive film “The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild“, which is due to arrive in 2022. The story centres on three series favourites: the prankster possum brothers Crash and Eddie, and the swashbuckling titular weasel, Buck. Simon Pegg will be returning in the role of Buck.  This was only recently announced at December’s Investor Day so that it could be the team’s last release.

However, all work on the animated movie, ” Nimona“, which was due to be released next year has been cancelled and won’t be released.

Disney will retain the rights to the characters and films created by Blue Sky Studios. The studio created 13 features that grossed $5.9 billion, with many of these films available on Disney+.

When Disney purchased 20th Century Studios, they put Walt Disney Animation Studios President Andrew Millstein in place as the studio’s co-president, along with the existing president, Robert Baird.  It’s expected that they will both leave Disney following the closure of the studio.

What do you think of Disney closing down Blue Sky Studios?

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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