Disney+ subscribers can expect to see significantly more mature programming options on the streaming platform as The Walt Disney Company works to attract viewers beyond its traditional family audience. Eric Schrier, who serves as President of Disney Television Studios and Global Original Television Strategy, outlined this content expansion during his recent appearance at the Content London summit.
Balancing Brand Identity With Broader Appeal
The challenge facing Disney seems straightforward on the surface, but proves enormously complex in execution: How does a company celebrated for 100 years of wholesome entertainment convince audiences it can also deliver compelling adult-oriented programming? When Disney completed its acquisition of 20th Century Fox, the company suddenly found itself owning edgier properties, such as The Simpsons and Family Guy—content that doesn’t align with Disney’s squeaky-clean reputation.
Speaking at the Content London event earlier this month, Schrier discussed how company executives initially believed they could transform Disney+ from a family-focused streaming service into something with a broader demographic appeal. That ambition eventually gave way to a more nuanced approach utilizing Hulu’s existing brand equity in the mature content space.
Schrier spent 20 years working as an executive at FX before Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox brought him into the company fold, giving him extensive experience developing programming for adult audiences.
“Disney is one of the most well-known brands in the world, and so changing and going full on FX-HBO was the instinct,” Schrier said. “And we made some very good shows I’m very proud of. But as we got more mature and we looked at, ‘Okay, what’s our next phase? We said, ‘Let’s be a little bit more complimentary. Let’s be entertaining. We’ll still do edgy things.'”
Disney+ Content Strategy Moving Forward
CEO Bob Iger has steered Disney+ away from the volume-driven content model that characterized the platform’s early years. Instead, the company now concentrates its resources on fewer projects, which are expected to deliver stronger financial returns. This recalibration has already affected production timelines and green-lit projects throughout Disney’s entertainment divisions.
Walt Disney Animation Studios made headlines by confirming it won’t create any more limited series specifically for Disney+, going so far as to cancel a hand-drawn animated series based on The Princess and the Frog (2009) despite active development.
According to Schrier, this concentrated approach enables Disney’s flagship creative studios—Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, and Lucasfilm—to maintain their focus on family entertainment, which has built the company’s reputation. Meanwhile, content developed under the Hulu banner can target older demographics without diluting Disney‘s brand associations.
“We’ve now been able to integrate the Hulu brand as the brand for all of our original content globally,” Schrier said. “We’re not really developing shows for kids and family — that’s really done by global brands and IP. So we’re really looking to do Hulu Originals across the world and showing people that there’s content for adults on Disney+.”
Eric Schrier (President, Disney Television Studios and Global Original Television Strategy) on their current content strategy.
“So we’re really looking to do Hulu Originals across the world and showing people that there’s content for adults on Disney+.”
(https://hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/disney-tv-president-eric-schrier-content-london-rivals-talk-1236440930/)
Eric Schrier (President, Disney Television Studios and Global Original Television Strategy) on their current content strategy.
“So we’re really looking to do Hulu Originals across the world and showing people that there’s content for adults on Disney+.”… pic.twitter.com/dvioJJg7Ds
— Boardwalk Times (@BoardwalkTimes) December 3, 2025
While Disney+ pursues profitability through multiple revenue strategies, including higher subscription costs, tighter production budgets, and ad-supported membership options, Schrier maintains that creative freedom and experimentation remain central to content development—especially for shows targeting mature viewers. The executive emphasized his commitment to protecting space for innovation and acknowledged that some projects may not succeed.
“I really try to give my creative leaders room to experiment and take risks, and failure is okay,” he said. “That’s going to happen in the creative business, and you need to be able to take risk, and you need to be able to build risk in the system. That model and that philosophy has worked really well and has shown that, actually, from a business standpoint, our return on investment and our failure rate is actually smaller because we’re willing to take risks.”
Should Disney+ introduce more adult-oriented content? Share your opinion with Disney Dining in the comments!
