Disney Rumors for December 2022
In the days before smartphones, kids loved Etch-A-Sketches because of what they represented.
Whenever you grew tired of whatever you were drawing, you could simply shake the device, erase everything, and start from scratch.


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That’s also the tactic just employed when it Etch-A-Sketched Bob Chapek out of existence. Now, Bob Iger returns, bringing with him new park plans.
What should Disney fans expect now that Iger has returned?


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This month’s “rumors” are more about recalibrating our expectations under new Disney leadership.
Should Disney Expand?
Let’s start with the uncomfortable but realistic part of this conversation.


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Here’s what we know about Disney’s finances. They were bad enough to force the company to fire its CEO.
Don’t get me wrong. Bob Chapek has left the building for any number of reasons, not just Disney’s financial struggles.


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Still, an economic outlook that appeared bright just a few months ago has obviously taken a turn.
Wall Street freaked over the news that Disney had lost nearly $1.5 billion in three months for its streaming content.


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Also, Chapek reportedly hid some of the losses by airing multiple programs on linear television first. That strategy allowed him to write off the expenses as linear, not streaming.
Disney obviously wouldn’t do this unless the numbers were problematic.
However, the theme park revenue was quite good. So, why didn’t Chapek improve the parks?


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Realistically, the answer is that Chapek viewed the parks as a rainmaker, a ready source of revenue rather than something that needed improvement.
By all accounts, Iger disagrees. He reportedly pushed back on any number of park-related changes, which is the good news here.


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Even though Disney could face financial struggles in the event of a 2023 recession, Iger appears likely to recommit to the parks in a way that Chapek never did.
What’s maddening about that thought is the knowledge that Chapek had previously run the Parks division. It’s stunning how little he cared about making the parks better.


Image Credit: @jaytasmic/Twitter
We know that Iger does care. Still, he has bigger fish to fry financially. Will Iger commit to improving the parks or just roll back some of the draconian Chapek measures?
I suspect Disney will announce some expansions soon, but I also don’t expect these projects to happen for several years.

Who Will Call the Shots on Future Projects?
The unfortunate answer here may be that there won’t be any in the near future. We’ll all hope not, but we should acknowledge that.
Disney just announced a $900 million purchase for the remaining portion of BAMTech, the streaming technology that drives Disney+.


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In addition, Iger’s reset of the Disney Media and Entertainment division will require some sort of write-down as well.
Disney does seem to be warning people that its finances are precarious. On a personal level, Iger needs some wins, though. And theme park expansions would count.


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Not coincidentally, Disney’s recent SEC filing suggested that the company will spend substantially more on capital expenditures in 2023.
Along those lines, I recently mentioned something fascinating about Iger’s Town Hall. When asked about Park Passes, he immediately deferred to Josh D’Amaro.


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For this reason, I suspect that Iger will lean on D’Amaro when it comes to selecting new projects.
What’s Real vs. Fake?
D’Amaro had obviously spoken with the since-deposed Chapek about future expansions. Their indecision here led to the awkward D23 parks panel.


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At the time, D’Amaro feigned some announcements that may have never come to fruition.
When we talk about what’s beyond Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, that’s totally theoretical. Those blueprints exist, but they’re just ideas.


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Disney fans would be shocked to view the various Imagineering archives to see how many blue-sky drawings are out there.
The original concept for The Living Seas/The Seas with Nemo & Friends called for an underwater pavilion encased in a dome! I’m not even joking!


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An illustrator can draw anything. Bringing it to life is the challenge. Those things cost money, and budget cuts have become a fact of line in the theme park industry.
This problem isn’t new, either. Walt Disney famously sold everything he could to finance Disneyland.


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Recently, Toy Story Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge suffered some cuts due to cash flow problems. It happens, and we must allow for that when we discuss future plans.
What Should Happen Next?
I’ll be honest with you. Nobody knows. I’ve heard some stuff, but it’s challenging to separate the Chapek era from the Iger era.


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After all, one of those regimes is only a few days old. Still, if we presume D’Amaro’s ideas carry a ton of weight with Iger, I expect some announcements over the next six months.
Disney will need those reveals to offset the inevitable wave of negative headlines when Splash Mountain closes permanently.


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Until recently, signs pointed to that happening during the first quarter of 2023. Is that still the timeline? Who knows?
My guess is that Disney will maintain that schedule, though. I say that because Iger believes in empowering his lieutenants.
As such, D’Amaro and his lieutenants should use this opportunity to push some ideas, preferably cheap ones.
I’m not saying that’s what I prefer, but the inexpensive stuff is most likely to gain approval.


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For example, Disney could justify a third Galaxy’s Edge attraction. There’s room for one at Disney’s Hollywood Studios for sure and possibly a smaller one at Disneyland.
Since these themed lands already feature two high-quality attractions, the third wouldn’t need to be on that scale.


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Anything Star Wars would be plenty good enough for most fans. So, Disney could probably add something for eight figures or low nine figures.
Attractions like this may make more sense in the short term than an investment in an entire themed land.
The problem Imagineers face is that they’re constantly in competition with themselves.
Some critics assailed Toy Story Land because it was no Pandora – The World of Avatar. Meanwhile, a new themed land today must surpass Galaxy’s Edge in quality.


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That’s a tall order. More importantly, it’s an expensive one. Disney cannot afford that yet.
Is Any News in the Offing?
This question’s impossible to answer. If you had asked me a month ago whether Bob Chapek’s job was safe, I would have said, “Probably?”


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Since the start of 2020, Disney announcements seemingly come randomly, and many of them are bombshells…often not in a good way.
For this reason, I expect the second Iger regime to start with small-scale announcements.


Photo Credit: @jaytasmic/Twitter
Disney will almost certainly talk about annual passes and dining plans before new themed lands or attractions.
Still, we know that Imagineers have plans at the ready for Moana and Zootopia attractions at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
How long would Disney need to advance those plans? Well, I think of the process like Hollywood films.
Projects get bandied about for years as negotiations occur for actors and writers.


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Once names get attached to projects, they enter a pre-production stage. Then, when filming dates are near, the project officially goes into production.
Currently, almost all the projects Disney announced for its American theme parks aren’t even in the pre-production stage.


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Iger could steal a few headlines by saying that these attractions WILL happen. That’ll advance them into pre-production.
Frankly, the only park addition that could enter production quickly is the PLAY! pavilion, a concept that sounds extremely dead.


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So, I think the American parks are stuck for a while. We’ll probably need to look at the international locales for the exciting new stuff.
All we’re getting here is the new Mickey’s ToonTown, Journey of Water | Inspired by Moana, and Tron Lightcycle Power Run. And we should have all of them within the next 12 months.


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For this reason, Disney really needs to come up with some announcements soon.
We’ve had too many theme park price increases without accompanying new projects. It’s a bad look.
Thankfully, Iger appears to recognize that.


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