Lachlan Murdoch will replace his brother James as chief executive of 21st Century Fox when the media company finalises a deal to offload its television and film assets to Walt Disney.
Lachlan and Rupert Murdoch will serve as co-chairmen, with chief financial officer John Nallen also assuming the role of chief operating officer.
The Reuters news agency reported that James Murdoch decided months ago that he would pursue a separate opportunity on his own after quitting Fox. He is currently the chairman of European pay-television broadcaster Sky, which is a major sports-rights holder in the UK, Germany, Italy and Austria.
Fox struck the $52.4bn (€44.4bn) deal with Walt Disney last year and expects to receive shareholder approval for the transaction this summer. However, it has been reported that Comcast is preparing a rival offer for the assets.
The deal agreed by Disney would lead ultimately to the company securing control of Sky and media company Star India, among other assets.
Fox would retain control of Fox Sports and cable-television sports channels FS1, FS2, Fox Deportes and Big Ten Network, as well as long-term sports-rights deals for American football’s NFL, Major League Baseball, football’s Fifa World Cup and Nascar stock-car racing.