There are other worries, but there is a battle at the top of Disney’s executive office.
It has been a challenging year already for Hollywood’s biggest studio. After the pandemic, Disney was trying to recover and grapple with the release of films in theaters, as well as its streaming service. Then came the self-created challenges. The CEO Bob Chapek was forced to enter the debate about the Florida parental rights bill. Things only spiraled further from there.
Chapek was able to upend both the proponents and opponents of the law. His gay activists and workers felt that he had acted too slowly and late. This became a major PR disaster for Disney. The public, which overwhelmingly supported the law, turned on Chapek, with the state seeking to end some special Florida privileges that Disney enjoys. Add to this the severe underperformance of the new release “Lightyear.” It appears the inclusion of a lesbian kissing scene has repelled many families, leading to depressed box office returns.
This has led to company stock falling at 52-week highs and is rapidly approaching Half of its value has been lostSince September. This reality has caused a stir, as now a significant voice has raised concerns about Chapek’s future. Abigail Disney is the grand-daughter of Chapek’s founder and has begun an attempt to take down the head of the company.
To They report for The Wrap Abigail has been courting top-tier investors to the company and is looking for sufficient support to start stripping Chapek from his massive payout plan. It is a plan to reduce his salary, and/or increase his bonus payments.
The heiress has spent the last three months quietly courting institutional investors to support a shareholder-backed salvo against Chapek at next year’s annual meeting, multiple insiders told TheWrap. The entertainment giant has been under fire for doubling Chapek’s annual compensation to $32.5 million in 2021 amid a slew of corporate fumbles
The brewing proxy fight marks a major escalation in her relentless criticism of the company, injecting a dramatic flair to Hollywood’s reputation of lavishly rewarding top executives at the expense of rank-and-file workers.
It appears that this effort is not new. Abigail, a documentary filmmaker has previously spoken out strongly about the outrageous salaries of CEOs. The latest round of criticism targets a man currently in hot water for supporting an agenda Abigail supported months ago. The battle for Florida’s law is the root of many of the problems the company faces today. Ms. Disney was an open opponent.
The April issue of A lengthy speech she gave me I covered. A Twitter response that was unbalanced to critics of the Disney Company and the challenges posed by Florida politicians. The incident was quickly overturned. On Reliable Sources, Ms. Disney was featuredWe also discussed the laws and details of the company.
“These GOP media stars can claim they’re just protecting kids,” Stelter said. “But they are also demonizing gay teachers and condemning inclusive Disney shows. If you can create this idea that somebody’s in there trying to indoctrinate your child, the paranoid imagination can run circles.”
This is not what the Florida law allows. It merely was a measure of what type of content is age-appropriate for the youngest students – not unlike a movie studio placing ratings on its programming. Brian Stelter was then made an even more inaccurate statement by Abigail.
“This attack against Disney was so timed and rolled out so strategically that it was really hard for me to imagine that it didn’t come from a series of decisions that got made in the background,”
Disney was not at risk. It chose to join this culture siege. It concerns the curriculum standards that are based on age. There was no interaction with the company nor its operations in any way. The only attack seen was a backlash, after Chapek pledged Disney would fight against the law – something Abigail and many other compelled him to undertake.
Abigail, and other employees of the company are so worried because they didn’t know that negative reactions would result from their actions. Chapek’s strong comments went against the position of Florida residents and voters. Polls have repeatedly shown support for the law, and Disney’s vocal opposition defied the wishes of many parents — the core customer base of the company. It was evident in recent poor results for the motion picture.
His appeasement of gay employees was part of his appeasement complaining about corporate inaction, Chapek changed course on a previous decision about “Lightyear.” He told Pixar they could reinsert the lesbian kissing scene previously expunged, and this led to a diminished return in theaters. It opened at a loss of -30% compared to projections and will likely become a studio-sapping release.
Abigail Disney seems to be launching a tirade, seeking to hold Bob Chapek accountable for company losses both in value and public opinion. It seems that she is determined to hold Bob Chapek responsible for the policies she was promoting.
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