Fortnite's big collaboration with Disney is "still a few years away"

Highlights

Earlier this year, it was announced that Disney was investing $1.5 billion in Fortnite.
We got a glimpse into this partnership during D23 with the reveal of skins for Disney Villains and The Incredibles.
The larger “Disney universe” was also only vaguely described in detail, although we now know that it will not start for a few years.

Fortnite’s collaboration with Disney may have been shown off a bit yesterday during D23, but it turns out that the actual “Disney Universe” is still in development and is “a few more years” away from release.

Since Thanos and the Infinity Gauntlet were added to Fortnite in 2018, it’s been clear that Epic prefers working with Disney over any other company. That became official earlier this year when it was revealed that Disney had invested $1.5 billion in Fortnite to create what looks like a virtual Disneyland.

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Disney Lorcana panel at D23 Expo 2024

Disney Lorcana Panel on Past, Present and Future of D23 2024

This partnership was first detailed yesterday at D23. Fortnite hosted an event where players got a look at Chapter 5, Season 4, and some Disney content coming to the game later this year. As great as skins based on classic Disney villains and the Incredibles are, one thing was clear throughout the Horizons presentation: They’re just the beginning.

Fortnite’s big Disney crossover is “still a few years away”

Disney and Epic Games at D23. — Image: Disney, Epic Games

Following the Horizons event at D23, the official Disney Parks Blog published a summary of all the news announced during the event, giving us a better idea of what Disney and Epic are working on together. According to the blog, the two companies are building an “entirely new gaming and entertainment universe,” which sounds a lot like a separate game mode similar to Lego Fortnite and Fortnite Festival.

The blog also confirms that while Fortnite is getting some Disney and Pixar content later this year, the larger project between Epic and Disney is “still a few years away.” This was vaguely hinted at by claiming it’s still in development, but that claim is the closest we’ve got to a concrete release date. I’m guessing we’re looking at 2026 at the earliest.

Earlier this year, Disney announced a new collaboration with Epic Games, the creators of Fortnite, to build a completely new gaming and entertainment universe. Although this new experience is still a few years away, during the presentation…

While Disney’s offer for the Fortnite collaboration makes it sound like a very big project, it’s a little surprising to hear that it’s still so far away. To be completely honest, the deal was only made official earlier this year, but it does make you wonder how extensive and involved the big collaboration will end up being.