Disney CEO Bob Iger has discussed the company’s cost containment initiative for new Marvel and Star Wars content during a new interview with CNBC, after the announcement of his contract extension through December 31st, 2026.
Disney is slowing down when it comes to making movies and TV series for its Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm franchises, CEO Bob Iger said Thursday on CNBC.
The move comes as the company is looking to cut costs during a time when its recent films, from Marvel to animation, have underwhelmed at the box office.
“You pull back not just to focus, but also as part of our cost containment initiative. Spending less on what we make, and making less,” Iger said Thursday.
Earlier this year, Disney rolled out a broad reorganization of the business that included $5.5 billion in cutting costs, of which $3 billion would be slashed from content excluding sports.
Iger said Thursday that a lot of decisions were made to prop up the company’s flagship streaming service, Disney+, and beckon more customers.
While also noting that Disney had some Pixar animation misses in recent months, he called out Marvel as being a particular example of the company’s “zeal” to pump up its original content on streaming.
“Marvel is a great example of that. It had not been in the television business at any significant level, and not only did they increase their movie output, but they ended up making a number of TV series,” said Iger. “Frankly, it diluted focus and attention.”
It will be interesting to see how this changes output of Marvel and Star Wars content on Disney+ and at the cinema, although we have not seen a Star Wars feature since 2019.
Read more and watch the interview at the link below.
