Disney Delays Snow White, Elio During Dismal Year
Disney’s 2023 disaster just keeps getting worse.
The once seemingly invincible entertainment giant has taken hit after hit, partially if not mostly due to their own unforced errors. Despite being ostensibly a company focused on families, Disney took a hard left turn several years ago, starting by inserting political messages into children’s films.
They also picked an unnecessary fight with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis over the state’s Parental Rights in Education law, designed to protect young students from inappropriate content. They’ve employed men to wear dresses in a store targeted to young girls looking to dress up like their favorite princess.
READ: DISNEY EMPLOYS MAN IN DRESS TO WORK UPFRONT AT LITTLE GIRL STORE
Unsurprisingly then, the company’s stock value has taken massive hit, falling to 10-year lows as theme park demand slows and film projects like “The Little Mermaid,” “Elemental,” “Buzz Lightyear,” “Haunted Mansion” and “Strange World” lose substantial amounts of money.
But perhaps the worst press Disney had this year revolved around its upcoming live-action remake of “Snow White,” the company’s first and most important animated release. Star Rachel Zegler had already been recorded making disparaging remarks about the original film and saying that the remake would omit a love story. Then photos from the film’s set were leaked, sparking days of much deserved backlash.
Now the company’s announced that it’s delaying the release of “Snow White,” one of the company’s most expensive projects. No wonder Bob Iger wants to “quiet the noise” around the company.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 18: Disney Executive Chairman Bob Iger attends the Exclusive 100-Minute Sneak Peek of Peter Jackson's The Beatles: Get Back at El Capitan Theatre on November 18, 2021 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Disney)
Disney Delays Releases Of Major Projects
According to The Hollywood Reporter, on Friday the company said it’s delaying the theatrical release for an entire year, from March 2024 to March 2025. For a film that was supposed to be one of the studio’s tent pole releases, it’s a major setback.
The studio may imply that the delay was to avoid marketing issues around the current actors strike, but given the horrific press caused by their own actress and prolific casting and thematic mistakes, it’s more likely they’re hoping that the negative feelings about the film will dissipate given another delay.
Another Pixar project, “Elio” is also being delayed to 2025, further hampering Disney’s box office in 2024. After a year in which most of their latest releases lost money.
For Disney, these problems continue to compound, with little hope of recovery. The company’s employees are openly far left, and in leaked Zoom discussions, repeatedly reference their desire to insert woke political agendas into the studio’s content. How can Disney clamp down on that mentality without angering a sympathetic, far left press? Especially in Hollywood?
So if they tone down the political content, they’ll upset employees and the media, but continue alienating customers. If they don’t change course, they’ll risk pushing consumers even further away both at the parks and at the theaters.
It’s hard to feel much sympathy though, considering they allowed this to happen in the first place. What’s that line again about reaping what you sow?