Trouble in the Magic Kingdom: No Need to Worry About DeSantis, Disney Its Own Worst Enemy

The Walt Disney Company has its work cut out for it.

It’s been a rough year for the company, between the sudden shift in leadership with former Disney CEO Bob Chapek being ousted from his position and current Disney CEO Bob Iger returning to the helm. This was followed by one of the largest undertakings of restructuring, with massive, 7000-person layoffs sweeping across the company, among all its subsidiaries and departments. Entire Chapek-era divisions were eliminated, and even C-suite executives like Christine McCarthy and Latondra Newton are now no longer part of the company.

Trouble in the Magic Kingdom

However, Disney isn’t only facing rough waters internally. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has been waging war against the Mouse House since the company spoke out against his project, the Parental Rights in Education Act (more popularly referred to as the Don’t Say Gay Bill). The issue has escalated enough that Disney and Governor DeSantis have both filed lawsuits against the other, with Disney arguing that DeSantis is violating their right to free speech.

Governor DeSantis dissolved the former Reedy Creek Improvement District board, replaced it with his hand-picked board, and renamed the district the Central Florida Tourism District. Disney CEO Bob Iger spoke out against his actions labeling the Florida Governor “anti-business” and “anti-Florida.”

DeSantis is Not Disney’s Biggest Problem

However, while Disney is certainly embroiled in a high-stakes and loud lawsuit, Governor DeSantis is not Disney’s biggest problem. While the battle between Disney and DeSantis makes headlines, many analysts and lawyers are convinced that Disney has this lawsuit in the bag. It’s an “open and shut” case.

Read More: Disney Could WIN DeSantis Fight Due to Controversial Injunction from Trump-Appointed Judge

Disney should be paying more attention to the mistakes it’s made when it comes to the Parks… because the truth is Disney is more likely to shoot itself in the foot and hurt its own possibilities for success than Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis impacting them in any real way. Disney has already stated that the fight with DeSantis hasn’t hurt its Park attendance.

Magic Kingdom on a Saturday evening in summer. 🤷 pic.twitter.com/xhfyZKBleM

— Ben (@pieps86) July 9, 2023

Magic Kingdom is EMPTY on a Saturday

Despite Governor Ron DeSantis’s remarks and fight with the Mouse House not hurting the Parks, the data shows that some of the most historically popular dates saw relatively empty Parks. In fact, more Guests are sharing photos of Magic Kingdom Park and Disney World being empty, and the one above is Magic Kingdom on a weekend during the summer.

If it’s not Governor DeSantis, then what is the problem?

Related: “I Don’t Have a Lot of Faith in the Future of WDW”: Are Guests Close to Giving Up on Disney?

Many Guests feel that Disney is out of touch with its community. The company has become so focused on the bottom line that it no longer pays attention to what Park-goers feel would make a good Disney experience. Many hoped that the situation would improve with Disney CEO Bob Iger’s return to the helm, but that is yet to be seen.

Not only this, Disney’s movies are not faring well at the box office—though admittedly, thanks to its myriad properties, the Walt Disney Company is still #1 at the box office (primarily thanks to its global performance).

Bob Iger certainly has his work cut out for him; that much is clear. But the fact remains, if the experts are right and Disney has an open shut case with Governor DeSantis, they should get to cleaning up their own mess ASAP, lest they find that Disney fans give up on their chosen fandom sooner rather than later.