The Real Reason 20th Century Fox Is Being Renamed

One of the most iconic names in the entertainment industry is no more, but the reason for the rebranding isn't what you might think. Disney, parent company of the TV studio 20th Century Fox Television, just announced that they will be changing the name just as they did with 20th Century Fox films back in January (via CNN Business). The end of an era, for sure, as the brand and the name have been around since 1935 when Twentieth Century Pictures merged with Fox Films. From Miracle on 34th Street and The Sound of Music to Star Wars and Titanic, the studio did, in fact, produce some of the 20th century's best-loved movies.

But, you know, it's a whole new century now, has been for quite some time, actually. (Twenty years, but who's counting?) For 20th Century Fox, the hits have kept on coming, including such new millennium classics as Ice Age and Avatar (via IndieWire). Over on the TV side, we have the decades-old The Simpsons, as well as the more modern Modern Family. So is this why Disney's changing the name, to reflect the fact that we're well into the 21st century? Well, actually no, that isn't the reason at all.

Disney is actually keeping the "20th" part of the name (although discreetly dropping the "Century" designator from the TV brand), but the part of the name they really wanted to — and did — get rid of was the "Fox." And no, just in case you're wondering, it has nothing to do with species-ism, as there haven't been any complaints from members of the vulpes genus. Instead, it has everything to do with the similarly named, but entirely unrelated, Fox Entertainment, Fox Sports, and Fox News, which are all non-Disney owned.

While keeping the "20th" might at first seem like a bit of a head-scratcher, the studio's new name is officially 20th Television, while the film studios are now 20th Century Studios (which actually does have a kind of retro charm to it). Once you consider the expense and confusion of changing the entire logo, however, it makes much more sense. CNN Business says that the logo and title card, known around the world, will remain almost the same, with the exclusion of just the words "Fox," and, in the case of newly-produced TV shows, "Century." Older shows, as well as movies, will retain the same logo under which they originally aired.