Were Bob Iger’s Big Announcements Enough to Right Disney’s Ship?

After a disastrous 2023, Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger came out swinging at the first quarter earnings call with investors. Iger made a series of bombshell announcements meant to distract from Disney’s lousy year. But when the Walt Disney Company faces changes on every level and an activist investor proxy battle, were Iger’s announcements enough to right Disney’s shop?

Iger’s announcements had a little something for just about everyone, and Wall Street seemed to agree. The Walt Disney Company’s stock, which had been struggling, jumped more than 12 percent the day after, and for the first time in months, Disney’s stock was over $110 a share.

Related: Taylor Swift, Percy Jackson Season 2, Sequel Release Dates, and a Gaming Company: Iger Said a Mouthful

But will that be enough to calm the proxy battle from activist investor Nelson Peltz? It’s hard to say, but despite Bob Iger having several ready-made announcements for the earnings call, there were still plenty of issues at the Walt Disney Company that he failed to address.

Iger’s Announcements

Disney announced a deal with Epic Games, the maker of Fortnite, to create an entertainment universe, bringing together the Walt Disney Company’s intellectual properties into the world of Fortnite. Disney will also invest $1.5 billion to acquire an equity stake in Epic Games alongside the multiyear project.

Iger is also leaning into sequels of past Disney Animated classics. Moana 2, a surprise to everyone, will hit theaters this November, and fans have a release window for Zootopia 2, Toy Story 5, and Frozen 3.

Just Announced (Taylor’s Version) pic.twitter.com/bfmS5s2Y1w

— Disney+ (@DisneyPlus) February 7, 2024

Related: Disney Spent $75 Million on a Taylor Swift Documentary, And Perhaps a Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Retheme.

He also had some big announcements for Disney Plus and the future of ESPN. Iger bet big, $75 million to be exact, on bringing Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour to the streaming platform. He also announced that Percy Jackson would be getting a second season. And finally, ESPN will be making the move to a streaming-only version in 2025.

And Iger and CFO Hugh Johnston announced, again, that Disney was planning on spending $60 billion over the next decade on its parks. But without any specifics, Disney fans had to hold off on their excitement.

With all those announcements, Iger showed that his priorities are getting Disney’s films back on track, investing in Disney Parks, and the future of gaming and streaming. But there were still several subjects that he did not address.

Related: Enough! Disney Fans Want Few Announcements About Park Expansion and More Action, NOW!

Sins of Omission

When Nelson Peltz announced his second proxy battle for a seat on the Disney Board, his main complaint was that no succession plan existed. And despite all of Iger’s announcements, there still doesn’t seem to be one. Iger could argue that he has until the end of 2026 to find someone, but investors and Peltz would say that whoever will take over needs that time to learn the job from Iger.

With nearly three full years left until his contract runs out, it does not appear, at least outwardly, that Iger has a plan in place for someone to take over the company when he finally leaves.

Iger also did not address the future of Disney’s linear television stations. Disney had an offer of $10 billion for ABC but showed no desire to sell the network.

With cable television slowly dying and streaming taking over the future, Iger and Disney must decide what to do with their current linear cable channels. Does Iger have a plan to either rid the Walt Disney Company of these assets or some way to make them profitable?

Finally, Disney announced they would spend $60 billion on parks, but fans want specifics. What are they planning on doing to expand Walt Disney World to help alleviate some of the park crowding issues?

Disneyland fans have some idea of what will be coming with Disneyland Forward, but there are very few concrete plans to expand Disney World or even add a fifth gate, which would take years.

So, despite winning the news cycle and boosting Disney’s stock, Iger may not have done enough to fix Disney. Right now, it looks like smoke and mirrors, and the true verdict won’t come until these new movies hit the theaters and attempt to reverse Disney’s slide.

Do you think Iger’s announcements are pointing Disney in the right direction? Let us know in the comments.