Disney Headlines for October 14th, 2025
This week in headlines, Scarlett Johansson returns to the fold. Will Sigourney Weaver be right behind her?
Also, we’ll hear some unexpected opinions about Disney’s recent price increases.
Bob Chapek Wasn’t a People Person
Photo: Walt Disney Company
Hey, remember that time then-CEO Bob Chapek called Scarlett Johansson selfish?
I still can’t believe that’s a real thing that happened, but it did.
Photo: CNBC
Even worse, the actress was about to give birth to her first child at the time.
Tactless and ill-timed – that’s our Chapek!
Source: Variety.com
I’m referencing one of the strangest times in recent Disney history.
The pandemic had forced Chapek and his team to consider alternatives for releasing Black Widow.
As usual, Chapek did what was best for Disney’s bottom line, thereby shamelessly and almost gleefully violating Johansson’s contract.
In the aftermath of these events, the entire industry expected Johansson to block Disney’s calls regarding future projects.
Source: denofgeek.com
Since she had filmed what appeared to be her Black Widow swan song, the two parties recognized an opportunity for a clean break.
However, Kevin Feige, the head of Marvel, had a friendship with Johansson and knew Chapek had wronged her.
L to R: Melina (Rachel Weisz), Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) and Yelena (Florence Pugh) Photo: Jay Maidment ©Marvel Studios 2020
The parties eventually worked together on a settlement that insiders widely speculated to be an eight-figure apology for Chapek’s reckless behavior.
At that point, Johansson indicated she would continue work on the Tower of Terror movie.
Photo: Getty Images
We still don’t have that film, although it’s not for lack of trying.
The actress/producer recently described the process as a “hard nut to crack.”
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror in Disney’s Hollywood Studios
That’s understandable given that the attraction’s name is The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, but Disney doesn’t own the Twilight Zone brand.
That’s a CBS/Paramount property.
The Return of Live-Action
Obviously, a thaw has set in with Johansson’s relationship with Disney. Recent reports suggest she will play Mother Gothel in a live-action adaptation of Tangled.
I should emphasize that nothing has been signed yet, and even then, people drop out of projects frequently.
Picture: Disney
So, this particular performance remains theoretical at this stage.
Still, the fact that Johansson may work for Disney just four years after that implosion strikes me as remarkable.
Then, we have the other part of the conversation.
I’ll explore this in another article, but Disney had claimed it was out of the live-action remake business.
Photo: Disney
That decision seemed prescient in the wake of Snow White’s release this past spring.
Then, Lilo & Stitch debuted in theaters and became the number one Hollywood release of the year so far.
Photo: Disney
Thus, Disney has reconsidered. Besides, we were getting another live-action remake anyway, with Moana scheduled for 2026.
As a Tangled and Scarlett Johansson superfan, I’m all for this news announcement, although I also believe it underscores how chaotic Disney Entertainment has grown behind the scenes in the 2020s.
Back to the Future?
Alien
Another story floating around the trades legitimately shocked me.
I’m old enough to have seen Aliens in theaters – don’t judge me.
Alien: Earth
While I was pretty young at the time, I remember how much Sigourney Weaver’s performance altered the perception of female action leads.
Hollywood had written only a handful of potential projects for female action leads during the half-century before Alien.
Photo: Vulture
With Aliens, director James Cameron leaned into Weaver’s natural ferocity in creating a character that could stand face-to-face with the xenomorph queen.
The sequel became a multigenerational masterpiece, first driving premium cable subscriptions and later VHS and DVD sales.
Notably, the film did more for the concept of the female action hero than it did for Weaver herself in that kind of role.
Nowadays, if an actress performed that well in that role, she’d have 25 scripts just like it by the end of the month.
Meanwhile, Weaver really didn’t act in any project like it afterward, although she found incredible career success in projects like Avatar, Gorillas in the Mist, and Working Girl.
She’s probably never attended a fan convention without someone asking about the fate of Lt. Ellen Ripley.
Today, the door has cracked open on her finally answering that question.
Return of Ripley?
Getty
The actress revealed at New York Comic Con that Walter Hill, the producer of the Alien franchise, has written a 50-page treatment on “where Ripley would be now.”
She describes the pages as “quite extraordinary.”
Alien: Earth
However, she didn’t specify whether Ripley’s return would occur in a film or television series.
Her comments suggest a movie, but Alien: Earth is currently awaiting renewal for a second season.
Alien: Earth
If Disney wanted to supercharge that show’s ratings, nothing they do could match the return of Ripley.
Sadly, the timeline doesn’t work, because Alien: Earth technically exists in a timeline before the first Alien movie.
Image: Disney
The concern with making a Ripley standalone movie at this point is Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
I don’t care, though. I speak for a lot of people when I say that if Sigourney Weaver returns as Ripley, Disney can shut up and take my money.
Who ARE These People?
Disney
CNN reported on Disney’s recent price increases, making an important point.
Park officials introduced a new discount of $250 per night for four-night stays or longer at Walt Disney World.
MickeyTravels
You can speak with a MickeyTravels agent to learn the specifics; however, I can tell you that the discount is good for six months.
Also, you can stack it with the free Dining Plan for kids.
Disney
These moves hint at Disney’s updated business philosophy.
The company will offer deals to attentive customers in search of value.
Photo: Disney
The company is comfortable charging more to guests who aren’t as price sensitive.
Shockingly, there may be more of those than you’d expect.
Photo: Disney
The day after Disney announced price increases, Business Insider ran a story about the guests who are happy with the change.
One person was quoted as saying, “The parks are too packed. It was bound to happen.”
Disney
Then, the person expanded their thoughts by commenting, “If you charge just enough to have some people second guess going… people who are at the parks… enjoy it a bit more.”
That person is obviously like Cartman from South Park and wants the entirety of Disney to themselves.
Photo: Deadline
Obviously, that was NOT the consensus opinion, as some people were already a bit mad at Disney before the price increase.
Still, Disney CFO Hugh Johnston has indicated that the parks aren’t anywhere near as price-sensitive as the media would have you believe.
This topic appears to be inevitable every October as Disney switches its fiscal calendar.
I just thought it was fascinating how much support I noticed online for additional price increases.
Photo: MickeyBlog
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Feature Photo: Disney
