Disney Headlines for January 28th, 2022
This week in Disney Headlines, we learned that Bob Chapek doubled his pay in 2021. As you might imagine, his critics had a field day over this news.
Also, my beloved Peter Dinklage offered a fair assessment of Disney that has the company reconsidering some things. So let’s talk about it.
Peter Dinklage Questions Seven Dwarfs
A dear friend has developed a heated feud with Grumpy the Dwarf at Storybook Dining at Artist Point. It’s hysterical.
I mention this because Disney has crafted a beloved set of characters with the Seven Dwarfs.
When we view them as cartoon characters come to life at the parks, they’re adorable.
However, one of the most famous members of the dwarfism community recently chided Disney for its upcoming plans.
As you may have heard, Disney plans a live-action remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
The company earned acclaim for casting a Latina actress in the title role.
Recent Golden Globe winner Rachel Zegler, the star of West Side Story, will portray Snow White.
Dinklage, one of the world’s greatest living actors — watch The Station Agent, my friends — recently appeared as a guest on Marc Maron’s WTF podcast.
The Game of Thrones star is on a press junket in hopes of earning a Best Actor nod for his work in Cyrano de Bergerac.
During the conversation, Dinklage used language I won’t repeat here to express his extreme displeasure with Disney.
He pointed out that Disney happily takes credit for representative casting with Snow White. Somehow, the company hasn’t planned the same for its Seven Dwarfs, though.
More on Dinklage’s Complaint
Understandably, Dinklage feels the company isn’t considering all the underrepresented with this project.
The one quote I can use from the actor is, “Have I done nothing to advance the cause from my soapbox? I guess I’m not loud enough.”
That’s powerful stuff, and it has proven a compelling argument to Disney. So the company took the unusual step of responding to Dinklage’s complaint.
Disney indicated that the film will take a “different approach with these seven characters and have been consulting with members of the dwarfism community.”
Based on these comments, a question arises. Had Disney already done this and not said anything publicly? I’d like to think yes.
If not, the company showed impressive response time in addressing Dinklage’s complaint.
Given Disney’s PR struggles during the Scarlett Johansson tiff, I’d be surprised if it’s the latter.
Either way, Dinklage hasn’t commented regarding Disney’s reply at the time of publication. If he does, we’ll provide additional updates as needed.
By the way, the one thing about this story that isn’t getting mentioned enough yet is that Dinklage worked with Disney on Avengers: Infinity War.
So, if the two parties have a schism, that’ll make Marvel fans especially sad.
What’s a Few Million Between Friends?
Sometimes, I read a story and my first instinct is to duck and cover. I know it’ll be a thing, and I know I cannot avoid it.
For example, rants about Bob Chapek remain a thing in certain Disney circles. I don’t get it, and it strikes me as a terrible use of one’s time.
Even so, Chapek really needs to rebuild his reputation after a shaky first two years on the job.
Right now, the dude’s a pincushion, and the media can smell it. As such, we’re witnessing a slew of clickbait stories intended to satisfy his critics.
Then, we have the occasional story that is worthy of discussion. To wit, Disney just revealed that Chapek more than doubled his salary in 2021
Chapek earned $32.5 million last year, most of it coming from stock options and incentives.
Former Disney executive Bob Iger also doubled his pay to $45.9 million, more than Chapek. Some Disney fans don’t want to consider that part, though.
They perceive Iger as worth the money, with Chapek deemed more of a penny-pincher.
However, even this philosophy misses the point, as Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy also nearly doubled her salary.
The CFO increased her pay from $11 million to $21.7 million. That’s what happens when the stock price goes up.
Also, another factor impacts Chapek. He didn’t earn the title of CEO until two months into 2020. So, 2021 counts as his first full year on the job.
So, his salary reflects the new title. Also, the CFO and CEO’s combined earnings are less than what Iger earned on his own in 2019.
Many of us may dislike the fact, but this is how CEO pay works.
Miscellaneous Disney Headlines
Updating a previous story, the new Encanto song, We Don’t Talk about Bruno, has once again done the impossible.
According to the latest Billboard Hot 100 chart, this is the number two song this week.
In the process, it became the second-best chart entry in Disney soundtrack history, trailing only 1993’s A Whole New World.
That song spent one week at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. In the storied history of Disney, that’s the only week a soundtrack song has ever topped the charts.
So, We Don’t Talk about Bruno has a chance to do something unprecedented over the next few weeks. Keep the momentum going, friends!
In tangential Disney film news, Abigail Disney’s new documentary has been released.
This title, The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales, takes several shots at former Disney executive Bob Iger, among others.
We’re still in the early days of its release, but Deadline, Hollywood Reporter, and Indiewire provide mixed reviews.
The consensus is that it’s weird watching a member of the Disney family take pointed shots at Disney.
In other Disney news, the long-rumored Percy Jackson series has earned a greenlight on Disney+.
The author of the book series, Rick Riordan, will script the pilot. That’s notable because he famously couldn’t get anybody at Warner Bros. to listen to him.
In fact, I’ll reveal an anecdote of my experience covering that project. I wrote a fair evaluation of the struggles the Percy Jackson films would face.
A VP at Warner Bros. wrote me an actively hostile rebuttal, swearing that the film was the next Harry Potter franchise. It…wasn’t.
A message from our friend @RickRiordan. ✨ pic.twitter.com/T6bDYsNOGi
— Disney+ (@disneyplus) January 25, 2022
The explanation for why is that Warner Bros. inexplicably shut Riordan out of the project. I’m thrilled that Disney has warmly welcomed his participation.