Thursday, May 7, 2009

Choices...


Candid, I love candid...

You know I hate when someone in charge tries to place blame on others or states things were beyond their control. So it's refreshing to hear Bob Iger respond to an analyst who asked why Disney is at the bottom of the barrel of a year in which the studios are almost literally raking in money:

It's about choice of films and the execution of the films that have been chosen for production," Iger said. "We've had a rough year in terms of the performance of the slate. So, in that case, it's not the marketplace. It's our slate.


I may not like the results, but I like that I can trust the CEO of Disney won't sugarcoat it for me so as to look as though he had nothing to do with it. Perhaps next year it'll be another story.

I know Dick Cook is feeling the heat...

14 comments:

J. Katzenberg Jr. said...

It's one thing to float a slate of bad Spring movies (which is what Disney did). It's another thing to not even produce a major live-action summer blockbuster in May-August... oh wait, there's that one about gerbils.

WDP's summer rests on "Up", which looks like it will be a fine film, but like the analysts say, may have questionable appeal to adolescent boys & other repeat viewers.

Bottom Line: If you think Walt Disney Pictures had a bad Spring (take down 93%) just wait until September.

I don't know how this was allowed to happen. I like Dick Cook, but it will be a miracle if he keeps his job come the Fall.

Honor Hunter said...

Although I agree that G-Force ain't my cup of tea, I have a feeling it's gonna make some mint for the Mouse...

Remember Beverly Hills Doggie? I also blame the writers strike as a possible void of good ideas. And I too like Dick Cook, but unless things turn so bad the film division goes into the red, I don't see him losing his job. That said, he's great to sit and chat with over lobster corndogs...

J Katzenberg Jr. said...

I'll grant you G-force could make Chihuahua money, but this summer has Transformers, Star Trek, Harry Potter, Wolverine, Terminator, Angel & Demons, GIJoe, Ice Age and a handful of other mega-movies that came about despite the strike. These films are aiming at making over $200mil domestic. Not all will, but they've been budgeted and marketed towards that goal.

Then there is Disney... standing at the plate, afraid to swing the bat. Their 2010 tentpole Prince of Persia, starring Gyllenhal could easily bomb like I believe GI Joe will. The only sure thing in their pipeline is Pirates 4 way down the road.

Disney's marketshare is almost tied with Lionsgate's right now. That is embarrassing for a major studio.

Known Bandit said...

Even if POP were to fail, which I don't believe it will, there are enough other films Disney has for next year that I very much doubt will...

TRON 2

Alice in Wonderland

Toy Story 3

Rapunzel

Bob said...

I think one problem is Disney's marketing. It seems weaker now than it used to be.

Anonymous said...

Disney has got to stop making crap that cheapens the brand, like "Beverly Hills Chihuahua". Or "Bedtime Stories", for that matter. Disney's slate of live-action films look like a throwback to the days of stuff like "The Cat From Outer Space". And now there's that crappy hamster film. For god's sake, kids know stupid when they see it. Yeah, yeah, I know "Chihuahua" made money. But that was a fluke. Once in a while a truly stupid movie somehow strikes a chord, but it's still stupid (like the "Santa Clause" films) and if you keep putting out stupid films, you pay a price in class, cred and boxoffice dollars down the road. Disney's learning a hard lesson right now. Hopefully Iger and Co. have the brain cells to grasp it.

Bob and Rob Professional American Writers said...

You're right Honor, Bob Iger is a stand-up guy. Thanks for the article.

Anonymous said...

Sure Cook is feeling the heat. But don't forget former marketeer Oren Aviv, who's brought all these horrid projects to the studio. If anyone's feeling the heat, it's Aviv.

Anonymous said...

I wonder if the same people here who are loudly b!tching that the Disney brand isn't making tons of money are the same people who loudly b!tch when Disney takes a franchise such as POTC and does make a lot of money.
Personally, I think there are people who have nothing better to do that b!tch about Disney, no matter what the news.
I liked this post; I think Iger is exactly what the Disney Co. needs for the next couple decades.

Anonymous said...

I think Disney has a great slate of films ahead of them. I really think Prince of Persia is going to be good.

Anonymous said...

It's simple, they decided to reduce staff, reduce the number of productions per year, therefore the few films released had to each do well. You have to spend it to make it, and they cut back the spending, so they didn't make as much profit, unsurprisingly. And they also played it kind of safe with what was being offered.

Fortunately the balance of this year contains 2 great animated features.

Justin said...

I read a review somewhere that said exactly what I was thinking. Disney's movie slate seems much weaker now that Oren Aviv has taken over, and Disney's marketing seems much weaker now that Oren Aviv has left. Maybe Oren should return to lead the marketing department and someone else should take over to lead the Studio.

In response to Disney reducing staff and shrinking the number of films... the whole reason for doing that was to cut out the least profitable movies (the movies from Touchstone and Mirmax) and to focus on family movies which tend to have much higher profits. Revenue may shrink due to the reduction in films but profits should go up. However you still have to make good movies.

I hated the concept for BHC, but loved the concept for Bedtime Stories. But it's not about the concept, it's about the execution. A wise person once said (paraphrased), "It's not about the idea; it's about the people."

http://videogsb.stanford.edu/?fr_story=13ae9d4f1a13e4c68f6c87bfe6a15598d9f16c39&rf=bm
(20:55)

jedited said...

This is everyone FREAKING out about ONE lousy quarter!! ONE QUARTER!!!!!
I thought we were supposed to take the long view?!?
Disney is focusing in on their strengths which is animation and family movies.
Disney had quarters like this when they were churning out all that Touchstone crud.
Is it better to put out 20 movies that ultimately make $13 mil total or to put out 4 movies that ultimately make $13 mil total?
But as to the point of the article, I agree COMPLETELY. I have always liked Mr Iger and this is one of the reasons.

Anonymous said...

I like that I can trust the CEO of Disney won't sugarcoat it for me so as to look as though he had nothing to do with it.Right, that's your job (from last Wednesday's comments):

It's the economy, not Disney that's to blame for most of [the decrease in revenue].