Boardwalk Times: Stories from the Seashore —The Disney Proxy Fight Spurs Some Much-Needed News
This month's newsletter we take a look at some Disney news & rumors, the Disney Destiny cruise ship, and the Disney CEO succession bake-off.
Welcome back to Boardwalk Times: Stories from the Seashore!
In this issue, we will be covering:
The Disney Proxy Fight Spurs Some Much-Needed News 👀 📰
Disney Destiny Revealed As Disney Cruise Line Continues Its Rise 🚢
Disney Succession: Internal Candidate Bake-Off Emerges 📈
Podcast Plugs 🎙
Links of the Month 📰
We’ve gained a few new subscribers this month (some from various organizations in the entertainment industry 👀), so I wanted to ask a question.
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The Disney Proxy Fight Spurs Some Much-Needed News
The Disney proxy fight has spurred some much-needed news out of the Mouse House.
Before we get into some of the news from this month let’s take a look at the state of the Disney Proxy Fight which is just Disney vs Nelson Peltz’s Trian. Blackwells campaign for board seats seemingly hasn’t clicked with the media or shareholders. Plus Disney seems more concerned with Peltz than Blackwells.
Disney has received ringing endorsements from JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, George Lucas, former Disney CEO Michael Eisner, Laurene Powell Jobs, Mason Morfit of ValueAct, the descendants of Walt Disney, and the grandchildren of Roy O. Disney. A solid crew of supporters.
Peltz got a major endorsement from the ISS (Institutional Shareholder Services) although it seems ISS beef with Disney stems from their succession issue. Also, the ISS endorsement of Peltz was a bit odd because the ISS didn’t endorse Jay Rasulo, Peltz’s “running mate” so to speak for the Disney Board. If Peltz is good enough for the ISS, why wasn’t his choice of Rasulo good enough? Bizarre. Peltz will likely pick up a few more endorsements as well. It’s a bit shocking that Peltz hasn’t lured more former Disney employees or people in the media sphere to his side.
Another underreported aspect of this proxy fight is the major what-if of Bob Chapek staying in power. If Chapek stayed in power would he have reshaped the Board and the executive team even more? Does Peltz get nominated to the Board by Chapek? It’s something to ponder. I would like to think Chapek would’ve been more open to Peltz joining the Board. Chapek started his career at H.J. Heinz Company, and Peltz was a director there.
Peltz continues to make headlines as well. He made some comments regarding the Black Panther and Captain Marvel franchise that weren’t well-received. Going after Marvel Studios/Kevin Feige is never a winning strategy, and Disney fired back with ammo.
Yet a weird side effect of this proxy fight is that Disney is announcing things again!
First Disney gave details about D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. They revealed that the Honda Center would host three nights of entertainment including a Disney Entertainment showcase, a Disney Experiences showcase, and the Disney Legends ceremony. Tickets went on sale and it was quite crazy as well. Technical issues occurred but the demand appears to be extremely strong.
Disney woke up this month with news and we also have a few rumors and recent happenings to speculate on.
Disney officially revealed its Star Tours update and that it would arrive on April 5. Ahsoka, Andor, and The Mandalorian will be featured.
Walt Disney World also announced a new Encanto show at EPCOT, CommuniCore Plaza & Hall will open on June 10, a drone show will be happening at Disney Springs, and Animal Kingdom will be celebrating The Lion King.
Walt Disney Imagineering President Barbara Bouza also announced her departure this month.
Legendary Imagineer Joe Rohde has returned to Walt Disney Imagineering in a casual capacity. He’s currently just “teaching” but let’s see what happens this August.
Rumors/Speculation Section
Disney Springs Drone Show: This is expected to be a test run of sorts, it seems like Disney wants to incorporate drones into some nighttime spectaculars. I wouldn’t be shocked if drones eventually show up at EPCOT and Animal Kingdom at night.
Test Track: Chevrolet/General Motors is paying for the refurbishment of Test Track. Out of all the things at Walt Disney World that could be replaced/refurbed, Test Track 2.0 would be far down that list. Yet corporate money talks. The refurb will have a sizeable budget as the Imagineers make the 3.0 version with inspiration from the classic EPCOT attraction World of Motion. There’s also a possibility that the outside track may be enclosed so the attraction would no longer have to shut down when it storms. Losing the outside portion would be strange but it also would make Test Track 3.0 instantly stand out.
Animal Kingdom: This month a permit was filed for some backstage prep areas for future work at the park. Tropical America’s land seems to be moving forward, replacing Dinoland USA. The Encanto attraction is expected to be a people-eater and some are speculating it will be a trackless dark ride. The Indiana Jones attraction won’t be a clone from Disneyland and is expected to have an original storyline. Coco will also be featured in the land if all goes to plan. That’s not all though it seems like Animal Kingdom is prepping to build another E-ticket attraction. I’ve heard rumblings of The Lion King getting an attraction at DAK (Disneyland Paris is expected to get Lion King too). At one time, I heard rumblings of The Jungle Book but it’s unclear if that ever made it out of Blue Sky. We also can’t rule out Avatar receiving a third attraction and it’s rumored that a future Avatar attraction would use the same ride system as Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean.
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Disney Destiny Revealed As Disney Cruise Line Continues Its Rise 🚢
Disney Destiny was revealed on March 20. The third ship in the Wish class will set sail in 2025. The ship’s theme will be “Heroes and Villains” which fits the Destiny name quite well. My full prediction article is coming soon but it seems like the “Heroes and Villains” theme will be utilized wisely.
Disney has already teased Hercules, 101 Dalmatians, The Lion King, The Incredibles, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Black Panther, and Spider-Man for this ship. I’m expecting a few more hints to drop soon. Disney has been weird about the inclusion of Star Wars on the Disney Destiny, in some areas the franchise is mentioned and in other releases, it isn’t. Yet it’s hard to imagine a brand-new Disney Cruise ship would neglect such a prized IP.
Disney Destiny comes at a time when the Disney Wish is now sailing and the Disney Treasure will set sail later this year. Disney Adventure, their biggest ship yet out of Singapore, will sail in 2025. New ships and a new destination in Disney’s Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point make the Disney Cruise Line one of Disney’s most promising divisions.
In recent outings, Disney CEO Bob Iger has teased that Disney could do more in the cruise line space here soon. Maybe another port? Maybe another island? Maybe a few more ships? I certainly wouldn’t rule anything out.
Disney Succession: Internal Candidate Bake-Off Emerges
*Succession theme plays*
In a shocker to nobody, Disney’s internal candidate list for its next CEO consists of all four major division heads: TV, film, ESPN, and the parks. Dana Walden, Alan Bergman, Jimmy Pitaro, and Josh D’Amaro are in a bake-off to become the next CEO of Disney. At least these are the candidates we know of so far.
Disney CEO Bob Iger is counseling the candidates, especially in areas where they are less familiar. All four candidates are also working with executive coaches. This already seems like a better process than the Chapek succession.
Also, I think people need to remember that CEOs don’t always have to be familiar with every division. Josh D’Amaro could handle running a Hollywood studio, and he’d probably find a great candidate to run that division if Bergman or Walden ever stepped away. The same thing goes for Dana Walden, she could handle overseeing the Disney Parks as part of the CEO gig, and she would likely promote someone from within that division to run it if D’Amaro departed or got elevated to a new role.
It will be interesting to see if Iger makes any bold changes during this bake-off. The more interesting question is what external candidates will Disney consider? Will they look at other companies for candidates like Netflix, Universal, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Apple? Could someone like Ynon Kreiz of Mattel make it through?
I think Iger may try to do the co-CEO model or his successors. And if that’s the case it’s easy to imagine D’Amaro/Walden getting the dual nod.
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Podcast Plugs 🎙
This is the Waycast: The Bad Batch is back. Join Giovanni, Sara, and Joaquin as they discuss the final season. (Spotify) (Apple)
The Zach Perilstein Show returned with Boardwalk Times columnist Kelly McCubbin. (Spotify) (Apple)
Multiverse of Marvel will return soon with new episodes about Deadpool & Wolverine and more soon. (Spotify) (Apple)
LINKS OF THE MONTH
— Sean Bailey’s Disney Legacy: Reanimation and Later, Exhaustion (TheWrap)
— Universal Orlando Reveals New Details About How to Train Your Dragon — Isle of Berk Coming to Universal Epic Universe (Boardwalk Times)
— My friend Dirk had some good ideas on how the Disney Parks could utilize Taylor Swift’s budding relationship with Disney. I need an executive in Burbank to pitch her to be the next Captain EO. (CinemaBlend)
—When Disney Tried to Turn Orlando Into a New Hollywood (Collider)
— Investor Nelson Peltz: ‘I’m not trying to fire Bob Iger, I want to help him’ (Financial Times)
— Dine at a table that moves you from room to room? A look at the future of theme parks (Los Angeles Times)
— Joe Rohde returns to Walt Disney Imagineering for some master classes (Disney Tourist Blog)
— 5 Myths Critics Get Wrong About Bob Iger’s Performance at Disney (Time)
— The Marvels: Box-Office Bomb and Streaming Success (Boardwalk Times)
— Everything We Know About Disney+’s Society of Explorers and Adventurers (Boardwalk Times)
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