Disney’s in trouble, and CEO Bob Iger says the company is looking to three film franchises to save the day and right the proverbial ship at the House of Mouse.
RELATED: CEO Bob Iger Announces Cutbacks of More Than $5 Billion at Disney, Effective Immediately
On Wednesday during The Walt Disney Company’s earnings call with Wall Street, CEO Bob Iger and CFO Christine McCarthy presented information from the 2023 fiscal first quarter earnings report, including operating costs, revenue, and the number of Disney+ subscriptions lost over the quarter.
And while Disney’s revenue exceeded even Wall Street’s predictions–and numbers weren’t nearly as dismal as they were on the last call in November 2022–Iger was clear that the company is making major changes in an effort to reduce expenses. Though he says it’s a decision he didn’t take lightly, the veteran CEO announced job cuts that will render 7,000 Cast Members–roughly 4% of Disney’s global workforce–jobless.
Iger also said that the company was undergoing a restructuring that divides the organization into three different parts. And while talk of Disney’s planned layoffs and massive cost cuts seemed like extremely dismal news, Iger made an announcement that left Disney film fans cheering: three beloved film franchises are getting sequels–Toy Story, Frozen, and Zootopia, but it seems that there’s more to the decision than just gifting fans a sequel to their favorite Disney and PIXAR films.
“Today I’m so pleased to announce that we have sequels in the works from our animation studios to some of our most popular franchises, Toy Story, Frozen and Zootopia,” Iger said. “We’ll have more to share about these productions soon, but this is a great example of how we’re leaning into our unrivaled brands and franchises.”
Indeed.
The Walt Disney Company is “leaning into [their] unrivaled brands and franchises” presumably because they have been wildly successful–successful enough that further installments in the respective franchises could save the day when it comes to Disney’s current financial picture.
RELATED: “Poor Financial State” of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Likely the Reason For Its Planned Closure
Toy Story 3, Toy Story 4, Frozen, and Frozen 2 were massive blockbusters, each one grossing more than $1 billion. It makes sense that Disney would target these films as ones that could bring the “magic” yet again with new installments in their respective franchises. Iger says more information about the new films will be shared soon, and only time will tell whether the sequels can still garner the revenue they’ve brought in the past.