Well, to say that being a Disney Parks fan over the last couple of years has been disappointing would be...an understatement. Plans have been cancelled, prices have been raised, perks have been taken away, and there seems to be nothing new or exciting on the horizon. There is a LOT I could get into. But I need to stop myself or this post will never get published.
Since the pandemic, Bob Iger smartly stepped down as CEO and was replaced by Bob Chapek. Paycheck, as I so lovingly refer to him as, could not have inherited the Disney kingdom at a worse time. Iger was still facing public backlash and financial setbacks from his purchase of Fox for Disney+. Plus, there was the pandemic, which came with its own slew of issues. Of course, some happenings were out of Paycheck's control. And maybe his reputation could've just been a little hiccup, a tiny whitehead on the face of the company that could be easily squeezed out, healed over, and forgotten about. But he decided to open his damn mouth.
Yes, what I am most upset about Paycheck's performance is not necessarily his financial decisions (although they were pretty terrible, too) but his complete disrespect towards Disney fans and Cast Members. Calling half of your paying, loyal customers "undesirables" is beyond fucked up.
Under Iger, the Disney fandom really exploded. We were catered to, with merchandise designs, photo ops, and incredible experiences featuring cult-favorites. For example, when Hocus Pocus's cult-following boomed into mainstream media in 2015, the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular was added to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. As Disneybounding took over Tumblr, Main Street became filled with casual wear modeled after Disney characters - for adults! And all four parks were set to receive major upgrades and additions. We got New Fantasyland, Pandora, Star Wars Land, and Toy Story Land all within the same decade. On the other coast, DCA was re-vamped, too. But I want to take a moment to point out that 2/3 of New Fantasyland - Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid, are Disney Renaissance movies. Those are the movies millennials grew up with. Toy Story? Also a 90s kids thing. Avatar was widely successful and came out when a good chunk of millennials were in college or high school. And Star Wars may have gained a younger audience with the sequels, but the prequels were made...in the 90s and early 00s. Which meant that millennial children were watching them. All of the major additions to the parks were catered towards the millennial audience - all of whom were adults using social media to geek out about Disney by this point. All of this is connected to my Disney Nostalgia Theory ™(which is for a different post). Anyways, it was a good time to be a parks fan under Iger.
Even if Iger did make some mistakes (and he DID), as a fan and former CM, I never felt disrespected under Iger. Paycheck's treatment of his company's own supporters has made my passion for Disney dull. And I am not the only one.
As happy as we are that the Evil Paycheck is defeated, I cannot honestly say a miracle is going to happen to the company anytime soon.
Iger was brought back to cut costs as the corporation isn't making as much money as they want to (emphasis on WANT). That probably means Iger isn't going to see his original plan of updating all four parks through. Epcot is not getting anymore revamps anytime soon, even though it still desperately needs it. After Tron, Tiana, and Moana are finished, we will probably not see anything new in the World for a looong time. Prices might continue to rise. Iger loved focusing on Disney+, so I bet the streaming platform will get more attention than any other area in the company. Of course, I know next to nothing about how a company works, so these are all just predictions from someone who has followed Disney news for years.
Iger is a temporary fix, a step in the right direction, a bandaid over the zit as it heals. I have high hopes but no expectations.
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