Disney’s woes aren’t going away.
The Disney-owned Pixar just shed 14 percent of its workforce, a move following the dismissal of 75 creatives last year.
The news comes on the heels of too many recent Disney duds to count. Here’s just one:
Last year’s “Wish,” supposedly a tribute to the studio’s 100th year anniversary, proved particularly galling. The animated film earned $63 million at the U.S. box office.
CEO Bob Iger is promising less content moving forward, a decision impacting the deflated MCU and other properties. One Disney executive lashed out at “racist, sexist” consumers for the Mouse House’s recent woes.
John Musker has more constructive criticism.
Musker worked at Disney for decades. His credits include directing “The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin” and “Moana,” among many other projects. He left the company six years ago, part of an exodus that coincided with the company’s new DEI initiatives.
Film Threat’s “The D-Files project” delivers the behind-the-scenes chaos tied to its woke agenda. The site’s reportage reveals Disney’s quest for a more diverse workforce. That pushed many talented veterans to find work elsewhere.
Now, the ex-Disney animator has some advice for his former bosses. More entertainment, less fun.
The animator spoke to El Pais on a wide range of subjects, including ways to revive the Disney brand. Musker didn’t get political. Instead, he gently suggested what’s gone wrong with the studio and how to right the ship.
Far easier said than done.
For starters, Team Disney should let story and characters lead the way, not any Culture War agendas.
The classic Disney films didn’t start out trying to have a message. They wanted you to get involved in the characters and the story and the world, and I think that’s still the heart of it. You don’t have to exclude agendas, but you have to first create characters who you sympathize with and who are compelling. I think they need to do a course correction a bit in terms of putting the message secondary, behind entertainment and compelling story and engaging characters.
Iger has promised to avoid Culture War battles in the future.
Yet the upcoming “Star Wars” project “Tales of the Empire” features a nonbinary character and the “Fantastic Four” reboot gender-swaps Marvel’s iconic Silver Surfer character.
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