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Disney Abandons It All & Looks to These Two Things For Its Future at the Box Office

Disney is reportedly abandoning it all and leaning heavily on the past to bring about its success at the box office now and in the future, but the decision could ultimately cost the House of Mouse everything in the end.

Related: Disney Classics Gone Horribly Wrong: Awful Lessons We Learn From the Films on Opposite Day

Prince Charming Cinderella romantic disney songs
Credit: Disney

Disney CEO Bob Iger Tells All at the D23 Expo

When Disney CEO Bob Iger took the stage at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on Friday night, the audience of more than 12,000 eager and excited Disney fans exploded with applause.

“I was going to say good evening and thank you for that warm welcome,” Iger said to the elated crowd, “but that was more than a warm welcome.”

Iger set the stage–quite literally–for a three-hour presentation from The Walt Disney Company about its upcoming film and television projects. Some of the projects were not really news to most fans, including Moana 2, Toy Story 5, Frozen 3, and a cute new series inspired by Disney’s Zootopia.

A large audience is seated in a dark auditorium for a Disney D23 event. The stage features a giant screen displaying "D23" with a speaker projected on an adjacent tall screen. Blue lighting illuminates the scene, creating a vibrant and energetic atmosphere.
Credit: The Walt Disney Company

A few of the announcements were true revelations about projects fans hadn’t yet heard about. But many fans likely stopped listening after the announcements about the previously discussed projects. That’s because it became glaringly obvious to them that Disney is putting its faith and trust in anything but pixie dust.

In fact, the company seems to be abandoning everything–including its good reasoning and common sense–and going all in on Disney’s future success at the box office. But the wager might prove too much for the Houe of Mouse.

A Catastrophic Run at the Box Office

The box office has not been good to Disney in recent years.

But in recent years, Disney’s Midas touch has been tarnished, thanks to a myriad of decisions, scenarios, and events—some within Disney’s control and some outside of Disney’s control—that came together to create the perfect storm.

Strange World movie scene
“Strange World” (2022)/Credit: Disney

Once upon a time, Disney had quite the magical grasp at the box office. The company’s success in films and television was even likened to the prevalence of an almost Midas touch of sorts. In short, if Disney made the film, it would perform well. No doubt about it.

In 2022, Disney experienced one of the worst box office years in its history, losing hundreds of millions in revenue. In March 2022, Pixar’s Turning Red debuted and was an embarrassing flop. In June 2022, Pixar offered up its idea of a spinoff from the Toy Story franchise, but with devastating results. Toy Story fans, by and large, were no Lightyear fans.

Lightyear
“Lightyear” (2022)/Credit: Disney/Pixar

Lightyear received copious reviews that used phrases like “spiritually empty” and “heartbreaking crap” to describe the film.

Walt Disney Animation’s only contribution to the 2022 slate of box office releases was an egregious one at best, as the pre-Thanksgiving weekend release of Strange World was bet with “boos” and “hisses” from crowds of all ages, receiving the lowest opening score for any Disney film in history up to that time.

Bob Iger Makes a Triumphant Return to Right the Wrongs at the Box Office

Iger has repeatedly admitted that The Walt Disney Company had sacrificed quality for quantity in recent years when it comes to its new films. He has also stated that one of his goals upon returning to the helm as CEO is to “right the ship” at the box office, among other areas.

In fact, Iger is behind Disney’s goal of rebuilding its reputation and “recapturing magic at the box office.” Such a goal is a huge undertaking, as Disney has seen failure after failure at the box office, with the exception of two Summer 2024 releases from Pixar and Marvel.

A colorful scene featuring five animated characters from the Disney Company's box office hit "Inside Out." Joy, a yellow character with blue hair, looks concerned; Sadness, a blue character, appears worried. Anger, a red character, looks agitated, and Fear, a purple character, seems startled.
Credit: Pixar Animation Studios

The latest Pixar film, Inside Out 2, is now the highest-grossing animated film ever. The sequel to Pixar’s 2015 Inside Out has topped out at $1.5 billion worldwide so far.

Earlier this month, the company’s first R-rated Marvel Cinematic Universe flick, Deadpool & Wolverine, broke records for opening weekends among films with the same MPAA rating. The new Marvel film met projections over the weekend, surpassing the $1 billion worldwide box office with ease.

Disney Goes All In on Just Two Things: Sequels & Franchises

But the recent successes might be the worst thing to happen to the company, as it might give a false sense of security to the studios–one that nearly guarantees a can’t-miss string of successes if they continue to stand on the shoulders of sequels and tried-and-true franchises only.

An animated character with long, wavy hair stands on a boat, smiling with excitement. She wears a white and red outfit, a blue pendant, and has large, expressive eyes. The background features a calm ocean and a colorful sky with clouds—a scene reminiscent of the Disney Company's box office hits.
“Moana 2” (2025)/Credit: Disney

Fans can already see this trend on Disney’s part with films currently in production: Moana 2, Frozen 3 (and talk of Frozen 4 and Frozen 5), Incredibles 3, Toy Story 5, Zootopia 2, and others.

A false sense of hope for success is just the beginning. After all, could Disney’s new “sequel mill” approach ultimately result in a complete and total lack of creativity and new ideas?

An animated image featuring three characters: a gray bunny in a police uniform holding a badge, a blonde woman in a blue dress with a confident expression, and a cowboy with a brown hat and yellow plaid shirt, raising his arm. The background is a burst of blue rays, capturing the magic of Disney company productions.
Credit: DisneyDining

Here’s hoping Disney looks at this prospect very carefully before taking steps to squash creativity altogether.

Becky Burkett

Becky's from the Lone Star State and has been writing since she was 10 and encountered her first Disney Park when she was 11. It was love at first Main Street Electrical Parade. Joy is blank lined journals, 0.7 mm pens, and all things Walt, Woody and Buzz, PIXAR, Imagineering, Sleeping Beauty (make it blue!), Disney Parks history and EPCOT. At Disney World, you'll find her croonin' with the birdies at the Enchanted Tiki Room or hangin' with Woody and the gang at Toy Story Land. If you can dream, you really can do it!

2 Comments

  1. I am a huge fan of Frozen, and I think they ought to leave it alone, and not make sequels. I would like to see them explore Kristoff’s origin. Afterall, he is about to become a king. It’s only natural, the subjects of his kingdom would want to know more about him. In the process, they could find out he comes from a very questionable family, that makes the people of Arendell hesitant to accept him. Then he does something honorable, which teaches the people that a person’s origin does not define them!

  2. Making a sequel to a hit can be a boon…Toy Story, Frozen, Cars etc…however, stop with the “live-action”, CGI garbage, and keep the controversial political crap out of them as well. Then maybe, just maybe, Disney movies will get the results they are hoping for.
    The movie theaters also need some help….charging the outrageous prices for the movie, snack and drink will also keep people away. With today’s wages, and high cost of living, people can’t afford luxuries like movies.

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