Fox Entertainment Buys Gumby And Will Relaunch Character With New Series, Merchandising, And NFTs

Fox Entertainment has acquired the classic stop-motion character Gumby, and all related characters in the Gumbyverse, from the estate of Joseph Clokey, son of creator Art Clokey.

What is Fox planning to do with Gumby? The question should be, What aren’t they planning to do with Gumby? Fox has obtained all rights to the vintage cartoon icon, including film, television and streaming, consumer products, licensing, and publishing. Fox says they’re going to create new animated series, live-action original content, and NFTs, as well as expand the character’s consumer products, licensing, and publishing activities.

How does Gumby feel about this? Gumby said in a statement, “Picking a new home was important to me, and I’ve found great partners in Fox Entertainment. They have a vision for my modern, multi-platform reemergence, which is thrilling. Throughout our conversations, Pokey and I reiterated that we are talent they can mold. Literally.”

And what about Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier? “Competition for globally recognized intellectual property is fierce,” says Collier. “Uncovering this gem, with its built-in awareness and affinity, and bringing it to Fox, adds meaningful value and creative possibilities to the IP itself and to multiple divisions of our company.”

Why it matters: Since selling most of its entertainment assets to the Walt Disney Company in 2019, the newly-slimmed down Fox Corporation has been in rebuilding mode. The Murdoch family-controlled company, which is also home to the Fox News Channel, is taking an “entrepreneurial approach to building an innovative, competitive entertainment company with owned original content to leverage across linear, AVOD, NFTs and other platforms.”

Its growing portfolio of acquisitions and partnerships includes Bento Box Entertainment, Tubi, Studio Ramsay Global, TMZ, and Marvista Entertainment. Additionally, its new unit, Blockchain Creative Labs, formed with Bento Box, aims to build, launch, manage, and sell NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and related content.