On layoffs, very bad attendance, and Iger's legacy being one of disgrace

Brer Oswald

Well-Known Member
I know this is a parks centric board, but I would suggest that "people" in general love the tentpole movies the company is putting out. And Disney+ has been a smashing success. It's tough to argue that his "strategy" when it comes to media is anything but well received.

Again, granted, the parks are a different matter.
People don’t love the remakes (yet they make a ton of money), and they don’t love the modern Star Wars films (also makes a lot of money).

Marvel is carrying the brunt.
 

UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
His legacy will take a decent hit when Disney’s PR machine isn’t managing it anymore and their goal shifts to building up Chapek, just like Eisner’s did when he was replaced. Then a decade later there will be a reassessment where people will start saying it would be nice to have Iger back, just like what happened with Eisner.

Difference is there was way more "good" to point to with Eisner, especially for parks fans. He did far more for the parks than Iger ever even considered doing, and that's despite how bad things got at the end.

I don't think most people will be nostalgic for Iger's tenure (I'm sure there will be a few out there) unless Chapek is around for a long time or they replace him with someone worse -- which is certainly possible.

Also, that 5 days a week operating schedule from the OP never made any sense. It could maybe be doable for Disneyland, but it would never work in a million years at WDW. It would be a logistical nightmare.
 

doctornick

Well-Known Member
People don’t love the remakes (yet they make a ton of money), and they don’t love the modern Star Wars films (also makes a lot of money).

Marvel is carrying the brunt.

It's easy to say, but I don't think the reality bares it out. Critics and snobs can complain about all the live action remakes but the reality is that "ordinary people" - y'know, the people who buy tickets to go see movies - actually eat them up. Even if critical scores are mediocre, they generally have done well on on Cinemascore and RT Audience scores (look at the scores for the live action The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, etc). And obviously the box office are largely good.

In fact, the biggest misses from Disney have generally been when they've tried to branch into original (or at least non franchise) live action movies. The very thing that people here often suggest they need to be doing more of. 🤷‍♂️

Disney has basically dominated the box office the past decade and it has done so by giving the audience exactly what it wants. And they are doing it with far fewer releases than other major studios. If someone wants to argue that the Iger lead Disney movie strategy is poor, then basically no studio is doing anything right. The reality is that Disney is consistently putting out films that inspire people to spend time and money to see them (and talk about them, etc.) - it's hard to argue that isn't at least a major goal of filmmaking.
 

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
It's easy to say, but I don't think the reality bares it out. Critics and snobs can complain about all the live action remakes but the reality is that "ordinary people" - y'know, the people who buy tickets to go see movies - actually eat them up. Even if critical scores are mediocre, they generally have done well on on Cinemascore and RT Audience scores (look at the scores for the live action The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, etc). And obviously the box office are largely good.

In fact, the biggest misses from Disney have generally been when they've tried to branch into original (or at least non franchise) live action movies. The very thing that people here often suggest they need to be doing more of. 🤷‍♂️

Disney has basically dominated the box office the past decade and it has done so by giving the audience exactly what it wants. And they are doing it with far fewer releases than other major studios. If someone wants to argue that the Iger lead Disney movie strategy is poor, then basically no studio is doing anything right. The reality is that Disney is consistently putting out films that inspire people to spend time and money to see them (and talk about them, etc.) - it's hard to argue that isn't at least a major goal of filmmaking.
Wasn’t this sort of the case with the direct to video sequels? They were being pumped out because people were buying them up but they were also hurting the image of the brand.
 

doctornick

Well-Known Member
Exactly. At least Eisner and company new they weren’t good enough to push them into theaters.

But when films are getting Cinemascores of "A", who is saying they "aren't good enough" or "hurt the brand".

A lot of folks say they think Disney is lazy with the re-makes and then in the next breath are like "OMG! I can't wait to watch live action The Little Mermaid". Movies don't make a billion dollars worldwide when people don't like them.

What hurts Disney is when the put out a stinker like Nutcracker and the Four Realms or Artemis Fowl.

Edit: just to be clear, I'm not saying that I like this strategy but labelling it as a failure seems specious compared to the reception and results of such films.
 
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UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
But when films are getting Cinemascores of "A", who is saying they "aren't good enough" or "hurt the brand".

A lot of folks say they think Disney is lazy with the re-makes and then in the next breath are like "OMG! I can't wait to watch live action The Little Mermaid". Movies don't make a billion dollars worldwide when people don't like them.

What hurts Disney is when the put out a stinker like Nutcracker and the Four Realms or Artemis Fowl.

Edit: just to be clear, I'm not saying that I like this strategy but labelling it as a failure seems specious compared to the reception and results of such films.

I agree that it's hard to call them a failure with how much money they've made.

I think they're creatively bankrupt and ultimately pointless -- they're all apparently worse than the animated films on which they are based (the only one I've seen is Beauty and the Beast, but I have not seen many people claiming Aladdin or the Lion King are better than their animated counterparts), and they are likely to be forgotten eventually in favor of those animated versions -- but they printed money for the company and that's really all they care about.

It's not a long-term strategy, though. This live action remake thing will peter out in the next 4 or 5 years because they will run out of movies. It's incredibly unlikely they'd try to release live action versions of movies like the Aristocats or the Great Mouse Detective.
 

HauntedPirate

Park nostalgist
Premium Member
I agree that it's hard to call them a failure with how much money they've made.

I think they're creatively bankrupt and ultimately pointless -- they're all apparently worse than the animated films on which they are based (the only one I've seen is Beauty and the Beast, but I have not seen many people claiming Aladdin or the Lion King are better than their animated counterparts), and they are likely to be forgotten eventually in favor of those animated versions -- but they printed money for the company and that's really all they care about.

It's not a long-term strategy, though. This live action remake thing will peter out in the next 4 or 5 years because they will run out of movies. It's incredibly unlikely they'd try to release live action versions of movies like the Aristocats or the Great Mouse Detective.

They can always re-make the re-make...(Sadly, I’m not kidding) Disney is a very green company, remember - There’s no limit to the amount of recycling of ideas they’ll do these days. 😉

You’re spot-on: The live action remakes are creatively bankrupt, no matter how much money they bring in at the box office. Quite a damning statement for a company founded on creativity. (Yes, I know Disney has used public domain fairy tales for decades. Absolutely not the point here)
 

UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
They can always re-make the re-make...(Sadly, I’m not kidding) Disney is a very green company, remember - There’s no limit to the amount of recycling of ideas they’ll do these days. 😉

You’re spot-on: The live action remakes are creatively bankrupt, no matter how much money they bring in at the box office. Quite a damning statement for a company founded on creativity. (Yes, I know Disney has used public domain fairy tales for decades. Absolutely not the point here)

I could see a re-make of a re-make too, but I think they'd have to give it 10-15 years to ensure anyone would go see it. I think even diehard Disney fans might balk at seeing two live action Beauty and the Beasts within a relatively short time frame. They'd at least need a new generation of kids!
 

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
I could see a re-make of a re-make too, but I think they'd have to give it 10-15 years to ensure anyone would go see it. I think even diehard Disney fans might balk at seeing two live action Beauty and the Beasts within a relatively short time frame. They'd at least need a new generation of kids!
The Jungle Book has had three iterations and we’re about to get a third iteration of 101 Dalmatians.
 

UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
The Jungle Book has had three iterations and we’re about to get a third iteration of 101 Dalmatians.

Yep, and there has been a gap of at least 15 years between each version, as I said.

The Jungle Book is a bit of an outlier though, because all three versions are different. All adaptations of the same Kipling story, but neither of the later versions were really straight re-makes of the original animated film. Not that that means they were necessary or even needed.
 

Brer Oswald

Well-Known Member
It's easy to say, but I don't think the reality bares it out. Critics and snobs can complain about all the live action remakes but the reality is that "ordinary people" - y'know, the people who buy tickets to go see movies - actually eat them up. Even if critical scores are mediocre, they generally have done well on on Cinemascore and RT Audience scores (look at the scores for the live action The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, etc). And obviously the box office are largely good.

In fact, the biggest misses from Disney have generally been when they've tried to branch into original (or at least non franchise) live action movies. The very thing that people here often suggest they need to be doing more of. 🤷‍♂️

Disney has basically dominated the box office the past decade and it has done so by giving the audience exactly what it wants. And they are doing it with far fewer releases than other major studios. If someone wants to argue that the Iger lead Disney movie strategy is poor, then basically no studio is doing anything right. The reality is that Disney is consistently putting out films that inspire people to spend time and money to see them (and talk about them, etc.) - it's hard to argue that isn't at least a major goal of filmmaking.
If I casually mention “modern Disney isn’t good” to a group of ordinary people, without fail, I get “yeah those live action remakes suck”. Occasionally I get “they ruined Star Wars”.

Do these people still pay to see these films? Bizarrely, yes. But I think it’s more out of curiosity than anything. They liked the animated film as a kid, and want a dose of nostalgia. They see the remake. It “sucks” or “isn’t as good as the original”. Rarely do you get “that was great” or “better than the original”. But they still pay to fill those seats.

Here’s the problem. There’s a limited catalogue that they can chose from to remake. So what happens when they run out? These should be used as tools to get the casual market more interested in Disney’s unique products. But if Disney can’t even be trusted to make something great out of what’s familiar, how will they be able to hold the interest of the masses when it’s new content?
 

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