Corus Scores Star Wars Films for Canada

Corus Entertainment has struck a multiyear licensing agreement with The Walt Disney Studios for the broadcast rights to the Star Wars movie franchise.

Starting in the fall, 11 films from the epic franchise, including original trilogy titles and yet-to-be-seen theatrical releases, will make their debuts on Corus’ bouquet of conventional and specialty networks, including Global, Showcase, W Network, ABC Spark, YTV and Disney Channel. The agreement with The Walt Disney Studios includes five of the six original classic Star Wars films, the Canadian network premieres of record-breaking blockbuster films Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, plus the highly-anticipated Star Wars: The Last Jedi slated for theatrical release in December 2017 and the yet-to-be-released stand-alone Han Solo Star Wars adventure. The installment that launched the franchise, Star Wars: A New Hope, comes to Corus through a separate deal with 20th Century Fox.

“Star Wars is undoubtedly a cultural phenomenon with versatile, imaginative, and character-rich storylines, and a prolific library of titles that continue to captivate audiences around the world,” said Barb Williams, the executive VP and chief operating officer of Corus Entertainment. “We’re thrilled to be expanding our relationship with Disney to connect Canadians with one of the most recognized and universally appealing brands.”