MCU to "Refocus” and Disney sinking faster than the Titanic (Starwars is dead Marvel is dead)

[Bigpig]

Disney have spent a lot money on buying up the competition and their now at a point where they have too much IP on their hands which they can't effectively monetise due to oversaturation yet the content they do put has been underwhelming to poor. Add in price gouging at it's theme parks, getting involved in a very public dispute with local politicians and a run of box office disasters like Lightyear, The Little Mermaid, Strange World and the recent instalment of Indiana Jones you have to wonder why shareholders haven't revolved and booted out Bob Iger (perhaps Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny will he straw that breaks to camels back).

They did. The attempted takeover was smashed before it even got going.

They got the other Bob in as CEO and the first thing he said he wanted to make Disney less political. Couple weeks later Disney launched the famous video about supporting LGBQRSTPTQ5551 the teams call one. Then he was sacked a few months later. He was utterly powerless.

They made an attempt on the Board by trying to install shareholder reps onto it. It failed. The other Bob was their man.

They brought Iger back and he was the architect of this whole mess and the first thing he did was started to fire all his main opponents.

Other companies are trying to repair the damage they have caused but Disney is just that massive like you have pointed out that’s it’s a lot harder to cut out the rot.

 

[ianh]

The problem they have at Disney is they let politics come before the product......

The description I use is that I don't believe that "the message" is the problem (effectively "everyone be nicer to each other" I'd say) instead it's the messenger themselves which is putting people off by doing a horrific job at passing a simple message in a well created way.

The old adage of "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar" is perfect for this situation.

If you want your message to spread to the widest audience then if you focus on making your media really good as your main selling point and then add a light sprinkle of "the message" on the top, that approach is far more palatable to Mr & Mrs General Public than making low quality media with a heavy handed dose of "the message" as your only selling point and then reacting negatively to your paying audience when they complain about the lack of quality.

Apparently this seemingly "common sense" approach doesn't appear in use that often in current year Hollywood.

 

[Freddie1980]

Apparently this seemingly "common sense" approach doesn't appear in use that often in current year Hollywood.

Common sense is virtually extinct at a lot of movie studio's, it comes down to weak leadership that won't/can't say no to a handful of noisy employees who are pushing these agendas. However this can't continue and it won't, at the end of the day money talks the louder then any activist can and there's only so much money these companies can lose before investors demand change.

 

[Bigpig]

Writers strike was never going to end well. Bring on the AI couldn't do any worse that lucasarts writing room

Studios Quietly Go on Hiring Spree for AI Specialist Jobs Amid Picket Line Anxiety

Netflix is hiring a $ 900,000-per-year AI product manager, Disney is looking for generative AI specialists, and Sony seeks an AI ethics expert, while the tech becomes a staple of SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild picket signs.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[Chuk_Chuk]

Writers strike was never going to end well. Bring on the AI couldn't do any worse that lucasarts writing room

Studios Quietly Go on Hiring Spree for AI Specialist Jobs Amid Picket Line Anxiety

Netflix is hiring a $ 900,000-per-year AI product manager, Disney is looking for generative AI specialists, and Sony seeks an AI ethics expert, while the tech becomes a staple of SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild picket signs.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

As funny as it is to dunk on the current crop of writers, who probably could be replaced by AI, a talented writer cannot. They can pack so much information, character and world building into a scene and AI simply doesn't understand this and will struggle replicate it.

Edit: Also where are they getting the money to pay someone 900k, to work on an AI model.

 

[ianh]

Edit: Also where are they getting the money to pay someone 900k, to work on an AI model.

My understanding is that role is to oversee all of the various AI operations at Netflix as a production manager, rather than hiring a person to work a single AI model. Plus the wage is "upto" $900k but as low as $300k which, for someone to run the whole of Netflix's AI team isn't a great deal at that low end.

Work at Netflix

A great workplace combines exceptional colleagues and hard problems.

jobs.netflix.com

 

[Chuk_Chuk]

My understanding is that role is to oversee all of the various AI operations at Netflix as a production manager, rather than hiring a person to work a single AI model. Plus the wage is "upto" $900k but as low as $300k which, for someone to run the whole of Netflix's AI team isn't a great deal at that low end.

Work at Netflix

A great workplace combines exceptional colleagues and hard problems.

jobs.netflix.com

Oh it's in california. They might be able to rent a two bed with the starting salary .

 

[the shadow]

Disney has decided to cease the sale of DVDs and Blu-rays in Australia

 

[ianh]

Disney said it's due to "dwindling physical sales" yet no other studios/distributors are doing the same. The making/shipping costs for Disney to send a fairly low number of small/light physical items like a DVD to Australia won't be such a huge "saved costs" figure in the grand scheme of things but, as no-one else is doing that now, will Disney's first step lead a whole bunch of others to block Australia from physical media now?

Personally I find the 1st Worlds over-reliance on "streaming" as a replacement for physical media to be a massive problem just waiting to happen, and I know I still prefer to buy physical media every time.

Disney confirms major change for Aussie customers: ‘End of an era’

All your favourite titles will be affected. Here’s what you need to know.

7news.com.au

https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/movies/end-of-an-era-disney-announces-huge-change-for-australian-fans/news-story/fde5b9eb6e9fb35d645779ccc3c7cd83

Disney Discontinues Physical Media Releases for an Entire Continent

'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' will be the last DVD and Blu-ray release in the region.

collider.com

 

[VincentHanna]

Are we really at the stage now where every little business decision they make is going to be analysed and make the news?

Other than Australians I'm not sure why people should be that bothered.

Physical media is dying a bit.

Totally anecdotal but when 4K Blu-ray's launched I was all over them, but I haven't bought any for ages now.

And I stopped buying standard Blu-ray's probably a decade ago.

 

[Chuk_Chuk]

Considering that VOD and streaming services can pull your purchased content at anytime, it is kind of important to maintain physical media. Also I think the quality is better in physical media.

 

[Jonny2284]

Indeed, but let's be real, if people were still buying in sufficient numbers they'd still be selling em. It's not some evil plot with a guy stroking a white cat chuckling to himself about your ability to watch reruns of station 19, it's simple economics.

 

[ianh]

I don't think anyone anywhere suggested that they thought it was some evil plot, the concern is that removing peoples access to physical media "forces" everyone to rely on a single point of failure, and when that fails (and they always do at some point) you will have lost the ability to watch films/TV that you've already paid for unless you bought the physical media.

Plus buying physical media means you bought a version of the film/TV which is set in stone and can't be changed at a later date so it can't be re-edited, have CGI added, get over-dubbed to remove offensive language or visuals etc which is what has been happening to streaming films/TV shows such as -

• It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - 5 episodes removed for "blackface" - I mean imagine paying money for a fully season and then months later getting 5 episodes taken off you, can't happen with physical media!
• The Falcon and the Winter Soldier - CGI blood removed from Capt shield and other violent scenes removed
• Lilo and Stitch - Unsafe hiding location for kid (tumble dryer) removed
• Birds of Prey - Wrong version shown via streaming with a much lower age rating due to lots of swearing/violence being cut out
• Splash - CGI hair over a bare bum
• Toy Story 2 - Removed casting couch joke
• Back to the Future 2 - Adult magazine cover removed from Sports Almanac
• Gods own Country - Gay sex scenes removed
• Aladdin - Song lyrics changed for cultural sensitivity

etc etc.

So the complaints are about more about Disney removing the ability to purchase physical media and why people see that as a problem.

 

[Nitefly]

I don't think anyone anywhere suggested that they thought it was some evil plot, the concern is that removing peoples access to physical media "forces" everyone to rely on a single point of failure, and when that fails (and they always do at some point) you will have lost the ability to watch films/TV that you've already paid for unless you bought the physical media.

Plus buying physical media means you bought a version of the film/TV which is set in stone and can't be changed at a later date so it can't be re-edited, have CGI added, get over-dubbed to remove offensive language or visuals etc which is what has been happening to streaming films/TV shows such as -

• Aladdin - Song lyrics changed for cultural sensitivity

I think that one was already changed from the cinema release for physical VHS releases in the 90s.

 

[ianh]

I think that one was already changed from the cinema release for physical VHS releases in the 90s.

You're right about the '93 version, I should have p[ointed out more clearly that I was referring to the live action Will Smith version which also changed even more lines over the edits of the '93 version.

How Aladdin Changes the Animated Version’s Music and Lyrics

Disney’s 2019 version of the film upgrades some problematic lyrics—and goes big on brand-new musical numbers.

www.vanityfair.com

 

[SixTwoSix]

Physical media is dying a bit.

Totally anecdotal but when 4K Blu-ray's launched I was all over them, but I haven't bought any for ages now.

DVD is still outselling both bluray and UHD - bluray sales are down significantly but DVD keeps trundling along nicely. There is of course a yearly decline but it's not dying off as fast as most predicted.

I've been in the 'industry' 16 years now and since I started, we were told there is only 5 years left

 

[Darujhistan]

As funny as it is to dunk on the current crop of writers, who probably could be replaced by AI, a talented writer cannot. They can pack so much information, character and world building into a scene and AI simply doesn't understand this and will struggle replicate it.

Edit: Also where are they getting the money to pay someone 900k, to work on an AI model.

Where are they're getting the money to pay Pheobe Woke-Bridge $20M a year to come up with nothing? How much were Harry and Meghan paid to come up with nothing? Terrible writers on $3M. There's always money around for the already rich, but more money for the people who really need it, at the bottom, somehow breaks the economy...

Another one of Crapitalisn's greatest lies ever told.

 

[Bigpig]

Bit like their theme park prices atm. Footfall is down so lets hikes up the prices!!!

Disney+ shakes up UK prices after worldwide drop in subscribers

The company reported a net loss of £360m in the third quarter - down sharply from the £1.1bn profits it made during the same period a year ago.

news.sky.com

 

[Chuk_Chuk]

Bit like their theme park prices atm. Footfall is down so lets hikes up the prices!!!

Disney+ shakes up UK prices after worldwide drop in subscribers

The company reported a net loss of £360m in the third quarter - down sharply from the £1.1bn profits it made during the same period a year ago.

news.sky.com

Disney+ was never(I believe) profitable, they are doing the silicon valley model of,

1. Be cheap
2. Get all the users
3. Raise prices
4. ...
5. Profit.

They've just skipped step 2


If we are strictly talking about movies and TV series, I don't think there is enough content to justify each company having their own platform. Even if Disney was at their best, they would have to spend so much money to keep the pipeline going that they would struggle to make it profitable.

 

[Pawnless Endgame]

Most people on here are discussing the downfall of Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar due to it all becoming political.

I can't remember if I have posted this before in this thread or another, but I am a fan of Disney for their traditional fairytale/princess animations. This is another area where I think Disney are going wrong at the moment. It's not politicising of their fairytale stuff, just the sheer lack of this type of film. They did superbly during the decades that Walt was still alive e.g. Snow White. After a rough couple of decades, they came back in the 90s with more fairytale hits like Aladdin / Beauty / Lion King. Their next streak was the 2010s with Tiana / Rapunzel / Moana, Frozen I and II which ended in 2019. Now we haven't had a traditional princess flick since, and I would really like them to pick back up on that again. Instead Disney have largely ditched the Walt Disney company that they were and concentrating on Marvel and other live action instead. Encanto was looking promising but was a rarity of times late.

Give me animated swords and sorcery