Interview with Bob Iger about the Parks

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Oh how I wish, lol I am not above groveling to a relationship. She is a sorority sister. I did not go to school with her though. That's all.

Ok gotcha...it seemed like you were baiting it a little bit...but I didn’t think that fitted you. That’s for the clarification

 

[eliza61nyc]

Ok gotcha...it seemed like you were baiting it a little bit...but I didn’t think that fitted you. That’s for the clarification

Oh no thanks for asking. I appreciate it when someone tells me I sound harsh. I totally admit to suffering from "open mouth/ insert foot " a time or two

 

[brb1006]

Oh Spirit where are you?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

When you look at Disney appropriately, and acknowledge that it IS as a publicly traded, SEC-regulated, profit generating business owned by its Shareholders (who by-and-large care little about the parks, and only care about the share price... and happen to be YOUR retirement fund).... Then, through THAT lens, I think Iger has done a fabulous job in proving that long term CapEx IS great for both short and long term shareholder value!!! Like I said earlier, you can love or hate what he's building, but Iger has built like nobody has in the past and it's great for those of us that love new, state-of-the-art adventures and attractions like Flight of Passage....

It's important to also realize that CapEx like this is NOT "the conventional wisdom" ... and it was NOT the game plan being followed by Eisner from about 1995 onward... Iger deserves credit for embarking on this course as it most certainly did NOT have to turn out this way. Eisner would have loved to stay another 10 years, and many others would have followed in Eisner's footsteps (like his kids who he was grooming to succeed himself)....

A lot of people here (and even some insiders) really feel like Disney should be run like some sort of public park, nonprofit, or quasi governmental benevolent "happiness generating machine" where decisions are approved by some kind of citizen governing board (consisting of themselves), historical society, or whatever... and this type of fundamental view is what drives a lot of the Monday-morning quarterbacking, armchair-CEOing, armchair-Imagineering, and on and on.

You’re giving iger credit for a “capex” strategy in parks he didn’t follow for almost a decade...creating a situation where there wasn’t a choice.

If the economy had crashed in 2013 - for example - he would have left in disgrace and be replaced by someone who would identify the mistakes of doing nothing but pouring money into China for his tenure.

Iger got lucky...he guards his #1 dime well.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Oh Spirit where are you?

I thought he had a breakdown and is now a retired dentist living on Hilton Head ??

 

[TwilightZone]

I thought you were talking about the live action shows being developed. Have you not seen the current stuff to form your own opinion?

Nope, not that into star wars. Never have been. But I'm with people who are, so I just get stuff from them.

 

[Rogue1138]

Back together in terms of the really hardcore fans. Not casual fans as I think most of them liked the Last Jedi.

I didn't like the last Jedi. I'm fine with the 'choices' the film too but I just think it was poorly executed. Solo gets a free pass slightly because it's a spin off. People watching the whole Saga, can actually just skip Solo.

Star Wars is from from being in trouble. It's just the dissenting voices are much louder now due to social media and clickbait media fuels it. The Last Jedi was the highest grossing movie of 2017 and the highest grossing blu-ray of 2018. Solo was the 12th highest grossing blu-ray. Read most of complaints about The Last Jedi. A good majority of it are people who didn't get their fanfic made and are throwing tantrums, or making a political debate out of it to fuel their own agenda. Solo had multiple problems that had nothing to do with the quality of the movie. Forced into a release date that follows Infinity War (a movie being built towards over 10 years), short window of marketing (shortest timespan of any trailer to release for any SW movie) and the fact its cost overrun was so high, it needed huge numbers to make a profit.

As much as the old guard wants to see stories of their favorite senior citizens unrealistically saving the galaxy, Disney is growing the brand fresh to appeal to new generations, and hopefully a foreign market, something SW has never been successful with. Star Wars has the issue of a generation gap (Original Trilogy fans hate the Prequels, Prequel fans hate the Sequels). Resetting back to zero is the best thing to ever happen to Star Wars.

 

[MuteSuperstar]

A lot of people here (and even some insiders) really feel like Disney should be run like some sort of public park, nonprofit, or quasi governmental benevolent "happiness generating machine" where decisions are approved by some kind of citizen governing board (consisting of themselves), historical society, or whatever... and this type of fundamental view is what drives a lot of the Monday-morning quarterbacking, armchair-CEOing, armchair-Imagineering, and on and on.

Vast hyperbole.
But that's ok because some of us naysayers engage in it too.

 

[jt04]

Star Wars is from from being in trouble. It's just the dissenting voices are much louder now due to social media and clickbait media fuels it. The Last Jedi was the highest grossing movie of 2017 and the highest grossing blu-ray of 2018. Solo was the 12th highest grossing blu-ray. Read most of complaints about The Last Jedi. A good majority of it are people who didn't get their fanfic made and are throwing tantrums, or making a political debate out of it to fuel their own agenda. Solo had multiple problems that had nothing to do with the quality of the movie. Forced into a release date that follows Infinity War (a movie being built towards over 10 years), short window of marketing (shortest timespan of any trailer to release for any SW movie) and the fact its cost overrun was so high, it needed huge numbers to make a profit.

As much as the old guard wants to see stories of their favorite senior citizens unrealistically saving the galaxy, Disney is growing the brand fresh to appeal to new generations, and hopefully a foreign market, something SW has never been successful with. Star Wars has the issue of a generation gap (Original Trilogy fans hate the Prequels, Prequel fans hate the Sequels). Resetting back to zero is the best thing to ever happen to Star Wars.

I agree with you mostly but there are storytelling techniques and archetypes that speak to each new generation. If Lucasfilm tried to replace that with the social justice policy du jour it will crash and burn as a franchise. Fact.

 

[Rogue1138]

I agree with you mostly but there are storytelling techniques and archetypes that speak to each new generation. If Lucasfilm tried to replace that with the social justice policy du jour it will crash and burn as a franchise. Fact.

The whole "social justice" thing with Star Wars is a joke. First off, the entirety of the Original Trilogy was about the Rebels being "social justice warriors". They are literally fighting for equality and freedom with diversity (even if it's a British guy or a squid alien). Second, people are inventing reasons to inject personal politics into something. Example: there was a whole backlash about Kathleen Kennedy wearing a "Force is Female" t-shirt. People started slamming their head's on the keyboard screaming "Feminist agenda!" It was part of a Nike ad campaign. Personally, if you walk out of a movie about space wizards feeling threatened by anything, talk to a medical professional. There's some deep roots issues right there. I've seen movies or shows I politically disagree with but I don't feel the need to cyber abuse the creatives online or continue to drone on about it a year after I've watched them.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Oh and another one he approved almost right away (and had been proposed for eons): Aulani. That was $800m+ and another big risk that Eisner wasn't willing to take. It didn't work out as well as they'd hoped (since they cancelled the 2nd planned property in DC) but was still a creative masterpiece and something those who have been there almost universally love...

So by my estimate, Iger approved about $4 BILLION in Capex in his first SIX MONTHS on the job (NOT COUNTING CHINA): 2 cruise ships (a billion a piece), complete redo of California Adventure ($1.2B), and an entirely new resort concept in Aulani ($800M)....

You seem to be writing your own narrative...and the Eisner hate is incorrect based on the credit you’re giving iger based on it.

Aulani? How has that been viewed from the DVC perspective? Just curious?

 

[jt04]

The whole "social justice" thing with Star Wars is a joke. First off, the entirety of the Original Trilogy was about the Rebels being "social justice warriors". They are literally fighting for equality and freedom with diversity (even if it's a British guy or a squid alien). Second, people are inventing reasons to inject personal politics into something. Example: there was a whole backlash about Kathleen Kennedy wearing a "Force is Female" t-shirt. People started slamming their head's on the keyboard screaming "Feminist agenda!" It was part of a Nike ad campaign. Personally, if you walk out of a movie about space wizards feeling threatened by anything, talk to a medical professional. There's some deep roots issues right there. I've seen movies or shows I politically disagree with but I don't feel the need to cyber abuse the creatives online or continue to drone on about it a year after I've watched them.

i doubt anyone cares about anyone's choice of clothing. What is presented on the screen and labeled as Star Wars is a different story. There are trillions of you tube commentaries on the subject. I having nothing new to add except the movies should be relatable by all ages, races and religions. Just tell good stories.

 

[HauntedPirate]

TLJ was disliked by far more than "a vocal minority", and not for the vapid reasons given. But keep on defending the pile of garbage that story was. "The Resistance ships are low on fuel and can't escape." "Excellent, we'll just sit here, then, and do nothing until they run out of fuel! Bwhahahahahaha!" "I won't train you. Wait. I will train you, it will take 3 days and you will be a Jedi"

Pixar was a no-brainer, and it should have happened years before if not for Eisner's thick-headedness. DCA was in trouble and would have cost more than whatever they spent if it tanked completely (and what they did was great, so why did they feel the need to spend another billion-plus on it just to re-skin the entire thing?). Cruise ships, sure, they were profitable and popular, that made sense (and I have yet to find someone who was against the move of building two more ships). Meanwhile, since this site is focused on WDW - WDW got nothing for years, because Iger and Staggs said it was "mature". Pandora was a knee-jerk reaction to Potter and everyone knows it. FLE was a wasted opportunity. But Disney just doesn't do the big, grand things they used to do anymore, they aim for "safe" singles and doubles. A home run would be a well-themed Star Wars land with 3 E-tickets and a few C or D's to top it off. But Bob plays everything safe. And honestly, I can't say it's all his fault, it's the corporate landscape right now. Nothing new, nothing risky, play it safe, make money, retire with your golden parachute that contains more money than you could spend in 20 lifetimes.

 

[danlb_2000]

????
This isn't even a meme format?
How old are you?

JT has a very loose definition of meme, it's basically anything that other people say that he personally doesn't want to believe.

 

[lazyboy97o]

TLJ was disliked by far more than "a vocal minority", and not for the vapid reasons given. But keep on defending the pile of garbage that story was. "The Resistance ships are low on fuel and can't escape." "Excellent, we'll just sit here, then, and do nothing until they run out of fuel! Bwhahahahahaha!" "I won't train you. Wait. I will train you, it will take 3 days and you will be a Jedi"

I’m still a fan of Snoke instantly becoming the most powerful character in all of the Star Wars movies who is then just as quickly killed.

DCA was in trouble and would have cost more than whatever they spent if it tanked completely

There was also political pressure to fix the park. Much of Iger’s investments were pushed by others.

 

[jt04]

JT has a very loose definition of meme, it's basically anything that other people say that he personally doesn't want to believe.

Any repeated axiom that is not supported by evidence is how I would put it. The moon landings were faked is a popular one.

 

[No Name]

This is the most explicitly boneheaded statement the guy has ever made. One, shows he doesn’t understand theme. Two, shows he flat-out rejects guest feedback to push his personal bias. He is clearly talking about Everest there, and that bothers me because he is entirely incorrect. Everest has yielded greater ROI than most of Iger’s investments. The highest-rated rollercoaster at WDW, last I checked, is “[maybe themed] like India or whatever.” What an idiot.

Bob Iger does a solid job overseeing movies and television but has failed to varying extents in theme parks, video games, and other forms of entertainment. He should not be making key decisions in businesses he has little knowledge or interest in.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

This is the most explicitly boneheaded statement the guy has ever made. One, shows he doesn’t understand theme. Two, shows he flat-out rejects guest feedback to push his personal bias. He is clearly talking about Everest there, and that bothers me because he is entirely incorrect. Everest has yielded greater ROI than most of Iger’s investments. The highest-rated rollercoaster at WDW, last I checked, is “[maybe themed] like India or whatever.” What an idiot.

Bob Iger does a solid job overseeing movies and television but has failed to varying extents in theme parks, video games, and other forms of entertainment. He should not be making key decisions in businesses he has little knowledge or interest in.

Please, Hammer, don’t hurt ‘em

 

[FoozieBear]

I think Iger just revealed some of their secret strategies for the parks over the next few years.

 

[Mouse3268]

I think Iger just revealed some of their secret strategies for the parks over the next few years.

Someone should do a wellness check.