News Catherine Powell's position eliminated

[ImperfectPixie]

As @TP2000 said, industry news is reporting she took the fall for SWGE.

Disney Parks Veteran Steps Down Amid Sluggish Star Wars Land Attendance

Catherine Powell, who oversees the U.S. and Paris theme parks for The Walt Disney Company, is leaving the studio, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Also, can we briefly pause to point out that even though some fans hate SWGE and others claim it’s all a matter of opinion, the industry does consider it to be “sluggish.” IMO, the attendance problems are due more to price gouging than SWGE, but nobody seems to want to publicly admit that except the Motley Fool article from a few weeks ago.

If Chapek and Iger really did make her the fall guy — fall gal — for the final form of SWGE and the recent price gouging, I hope this haunts Iger’s political career. Two guys make bad creative business decisions and blame the woman in charge of ops. But let’s be honest. It won’t affect him. The press is stumbling over themselves trying to get exclusive interviews about the same book, and they’re slobbering all over him as if he were the second coming of Obama.

I could barely bring myself to read the Times article. They might as well have called it "Ode to Iger".

 

[brb1006]

@lentesta has Jim Hill ever discussed about Catherine Powell in a podcast before? Because she's been way under the radar by the Disney Parks community until 2018. I'm curious to her Jim's thoughts on the current situation.

 

[tirian]

Wait Disneyland almost got sold to a foreign country?

No.

Shortly after the beginning of his tenure as CEO, Iger considered selling the parks because he believed they were a mature business that would only bleed money from the company’s bottom line. This was despite his approval to reinvent DCA. Fans hoped the Oriental Land Company, which owns TDL, would be interested, but they weren’t. Legit rumors strongly pointed to a prince in the Middle East (no joke!).

Then Disney tried using FastPass+ MagicBands to rearrange crowds and avoid investments in new attractions, Universal opened Potter phase 1 and proved theme parks could innovate, and Iger suddenly decided he cared about the parks by announcing Pandora. The parks stayed in the company.

Meanwhile, the P&R position became a revolving door for people who were being groomed to become CEO; except if that person ran the parks well, Iger blocked their advancement. Goodbye Rasulo, goodbye Staggs. Hello Chapek.

Years later, his distaste for theme parks continues to manifest itself by insisting they turn ever-increasing profits through cost-cutting, price gouging, and class systems. You’ve gotta love how he has divided the Disney Park experience to favor wealthy people who can afford cupcake parties, premium parking, and upgraded packages at hard-ticketed events—while pretending he’s a moderately liberal political savior for the common family.

 

[ChrisFL]

Kevin Feige has been said to be a HUGE Disneyland fan and is seen hanging out in Anaheim's parks regularly. He's sort of a younger John Lassetter who can remain sober in public and knows how to keep his hands to himself.

He's a big EPCOT Center fan as well

 

[brb1006]

No.

Shortly after the beginning of his tenure as CEO, Iger considered selling the parks because he believed they were a mature business that would only bleed money from the company’s bottom line. This was despite his approval to reinvent DCA. Fans hoped the Oriental Land Company, which owns TDL, would be interested, but they weren’t. Legit rumors strongly pointed to a prince in the Middle East (no joke!).

Then Disney tried using FastPass+ MagicBands to rearrange crowds and avoid investments in new attractions, Universal opened Potter phase 1 and proved theme parks could innovate, and Iger suddenly decided he cared about the parks by announcing Pandora. The parks stayed in the company.

Meanwhile, the P&R position became a revolving door for people who were being groomed to become CEO; except if that person ran the parks well, Iger blocked their advancement. Goodbye Rasulo, goodbye Staggs. Hello Chapek.

Years later, his distaste for theme parks continues to manifest itself by insisting they turn ever-increasing profits through cost-cutting, price gouging, and class systems. You’ve gotta love how he has divided the Disney Park experience to favor wealthy people who can afford cupcake parties, premium parking, and upgraded packages at hard-ticketed events—while pretending he’s a moderately liberal political savior for the common family.

It's actually sad knowing OLC (The owners of Tokyo Disney Resort) is the only resort that still's able to keep the old park experience that Walt Disney World and Disneyland was once known for (especially between the 1970s till the mid 1990s).

 

[tirian]

He's a big EPCOT Center fan as well

That’s why Guardians belongs there! Because Peter Quill and Kevin Feige sang “Tomorrow’s Child” together on Spaceship Earth!

 

[Model3 McQueen]

@WDW1974 is Spirit.

Gotcha. Thanks for clarifying.

 

[tirian]

It's actually sad knowing OLC (The owners of Tokyo Disney Resort) is the only resort that still able to keep the old park experience that Walt Disney World and Disneyland was once known for (especially between the 1970s till the mid 1990s).

Universal is getting close to that Disney Difference, but their “cool, rude attitude” shtick is a relic of the late ‘90s.

I still prefer the Disney experience because the old-school Imagineering in the MK and Epcot really are magical; and the resort has retained wonderful areas in DHS, DAK, and many of the hotels.

But yeah, OLC does it better.

Sorry, I digress. Back to the topic.

 

[tirian]

@lentesta has Jim Hill ever discussed about Catherine Powell in a podcast before? Because she's been way under the radar by the Disney Parks community until 2018. I'm curious to her Jim's thoughts on the current situation.

She’s been under the radar because she didn’t have too much authority other than rubber-stamping Chapek and Iger’s plans, and handling normal operating tasks.

Yikes, I can’t believe Colgalzier is still with the company. I remember when he was in charge of photos on the Disney Cruise Line. He’s a snob who manages to fail upward.

 

[TP2000]

He's a big EPCOT Center fan as well

That's good news! I wonder what he thinks of Bob Chapek's Wonder Rotunda and the changes headed for Future World?

 

[tirian]

Weirdly enough, this could be great news for Colglazier.

I hope not. What a moron.

He’s the only person for whom I have zero respect. Even Iger and Chapek have their good points—Iger with movies and media expansion, and Chapek with the Disney Stores.

In his early days, Colglazier led photography on the cruise ships and expanded Photopass in the parks. He oversaw the plan to fold PhotoPass into Entertainment so that division could show a profit, yet Entertainment has suffered the brunt of cost-cutting measures ever since that merger. Colglazier has been riding his PhotoPass train for years, even though every park he managed was poorly maintained and operated during his tenure.

 

[TP2000]

Also, can we briefly pause to point out that even though some fans hate SWGE and others claim it’s all a matter of opinion, the industry does consider it to be “sluggish.” IMO, the attendance problems are due more to price gouging than SWGE, but nobody seems to want to publicly admit that except the Motley Fool article from a few weeks ago.

If Chapek and Iger really did make her the fall guy — fall gal — for the final form of SWGE and the recent price gouging, I hope this haunts Iger’s political career. Two guys make bad creative business decisions and blame the woman in charge of ops. But let’s be honest. It won’t affect him. The press is stumbling over themselves trying to get exclusive interviews about the same book, and they’re slobbering all over him as if he were the second coming of Obama.

The Hollywood Reporter is an industry paper for an industry town. Now that the Reporter is blaring headlines about "Sluggish Star Wars Land" and senior executives who got canned because of it, you can darn well bet that's now the conventional wisdom in the industry. And that will be hard to prove otherwise for at least the short-term future.

The under-performance and sluggish response to Star Wars Land is now as set in stone as Clark Gable's hand prints in front of the Chinese Theater on Hollywood Blvd.

 

[tirian]

The Hollywood Reporter is an industry paper for an industry town. Now that the Reporter is blaring headlines about "Sluggish Star Wars Land" and senior executives who got canned because of it, you can darn well bet that's now the conventional wisdom in the industry. And that will be hard to prove otherwise for at least the short-term future.

The under-performance and sluggish response to Star Wars Land is now as set in stone as Clark Gable's hand prints in front of the Chinese Theater on Hollywood Blvd.

True, and no amount of fanboy defenses will change that.

‘’But the ROTR delays, the AP blackouts, the hurricane, the prices”—I can hear the excuses. They’re all valid. I agree that those are factors. (I also didn’t hate my time in SWGE, and I think its needs could be easily addressed.)

But the industry word on the street tells this story: “Nobody cares about Batuu. SWGE opened without its headliner attraction. It should’ve used the reliable IP from the original trilogy. Somebody overreacted and blocked APs, then approved a public relations campaign that scared the public; and when the blackouts lifted, word-of-mouth was too poor to save the land. Where’s Darth Vader?” That’s the story in the entertainment industry. That’s the version that’s affecting business decisions.

This is the kind of story Deadline would’ve followed back when it was a scrappy industry blog known for investigating rumors with almost perfect accuracy.

 

[brb1006]

Universal is getting close to that Disney Difference, but their “cool, rude attitude” shtick is a relic of the late ‘90s.

I still prefer the Disney experience because the old-school Imagineering in the MK and Epcot really are magical; and the resort has retained wonderful areas in DHS, DAK, and many of the hotels.

But yeah, OLC does it better.

Sorry, I digress. Back to the topic.

Along with the fact that the Universal Parks are usually aimed at the older demographic (especially in Orlando and Hollywood). I think Universal has slowly started to focus on both the younger and older demographics since the addition of the Harry Potter sections, an upcoming Nintendo Land, and some representation of Ilumination IP's such as Despicable Me (The Minions have slowly started becoming the mascots for the resort next to Woody Woodpecker), an upcoming Secret Life Of Pets ride, and Dreamworks (especially since the acquisition).

 

[tirian]

Is there anyone in management that could do good for the parks, or is everything doom and gloom upstairs and people like me are naïve for ever hoping for better things?

There are lots of good people in the lower ranks of execs and higher ranks of middle management. Some might rise, but the company is primarily driven by bottom-line profits, not expertise at maintaining the heritage and values.

@brb1006 — sometimes I think OLC excels with TDR because Japanese culture values traditional quality and reputation along with profit.

 

[TalkingHead]

As @TP2000 said, industry news is reporting she took the fall for SWGE.

Disney Parks Veteran Steps Down Amid Sluggish Star Wars Land Attendance

Catherine Powell, who oversees the U.S. and Paris theme parks for The Walt Disney Company, is leaving the studio, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Also, can we briefly pause to point out that even though some fans hate SWGE and others claim it’s all a matter of opinion, the industry does consider it to be “sluggish.” IMO, the attendance problems are due more to price gouging than SWGE, but nobody seems to want to publicly admit that except the Motley Fool article from a few weeks ago.

If Chapek and Iger really did make her the fall guy — fall gal — for the final form of SWGE and the recent price gouging, I hope this haunts Iger’s political career. Two guys make bad creative business decisions and blame the woman in charge of ops. But let’s be honest. It won’t affect him. The press is stumbling over themselves trying to get exclusive interviews about the same book, and they’re slobbering all over him as if he were the second coming of Obama.

If only she’d read this forum, she could’ve found dozens of excuses why Galaxy’s Edge hasn’t been a disappointment.

Let that be a lesson, Disney execs. Read this forum and you might not lose your job.

 

[THE 1HAPPY HAUNT]

So is it her I have to now shift blame over to for Falcon Ramp Gate or can I still blame Cheapek??? All I wana know.

 

[Lilofan]

If only she’d read this forum, she could’ve found dozens of excuses why Galaxy’s Edge hasn’t been a disappointment.

Let that be a lesson, Disney execs. Read this forum and you might not lose your job.

These execs don't live paycheck to paycheck like many do. They will look for another gig joining something or going solo. Or live off their net worth.

 

[tirian]

These execs don't live paycheck to paycheck like many do. They will look for another gig joining something or going solo. Or live off their net worth.

I believe @TalkingHead was being sarcastic...

 

[MagicStingRay]

Since it seems the position and title of President of Disney Parks West is being eliminated, do we know if the other positions such as the VP and such of Parks West will be eliminated too?