Bob Chapek Talks Disney+, ESPN and Hulu Future and Hints at ‘Hard Bundle’ Integration to Come

The Walt Disney Co., after some cage-rattling by activist investor Daniel Loeb, has added former Viacom and Facebook exec Carolyn Everson to its board of directors.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer The Human Rights Campaign has agreed to accept a contribution from the Walt Disney Co., months after rejecting it at the height of the “Don’t Say Gay” controversy. The move comes as Disney continues to try to heal the damage done by its response to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, which restricts classroom instruction on LGBTQ identity. Disney initially declined to take a public position on the measure, leading to a major backlash among its employees. As the furor mounted, CEO Bob Chapek announced that the company would oppose the law and make a $5 million donation to HRC and other gay rights organizations. But HRC rejected the money, saying it first wanted to see the company “build on their public commitment” by working closely with LGBTQ organizations.

backed down from that recommendation. Disney said in a statement Friday that it has “agreed to customary standstill, voting and other provisions through Disney’s 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders” with Third Point.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor As a top executive at Facebook and Instacart, Carolyn Everson knows a lot about the habits of tech-savvy consumers. Soon, she may be able to help Walt Disney Co. figure out how to harness them. Disney plans to expand its board of directors to 12 from 11 and nominated Everson as a new member. The move is supported by Third Point LLC, the activist investor that in August took a new stake in Disney and suggested a litany of big moves, such as spinning off ESPN or buying out Comcast’s ownership of Hulu. “We have a productive and collegial relationship with Third Point, with whom we share a deep commitment to continue building on Disney’s many successes and increasing shareholder value,” said Disney CEO Bob Chapek in a prepared statement.

EXCLUSIVE: Neal McDonough (The Flash), D.B. Woodside (Lucifer) and Amanda Schull (Suits) are set for key recurring roles opposite Rob Lowe on the fourth season of Fox’s 9-1-1: Lone Star.

Patti LaBelle has joined the cast of ABC’s for Season 2 in the role of Shirley Williams, mother of Dulé Hill’s character Bill.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Former Disney chairman-CEO Bob Iger and renowned film composer John Williams were selected for 2022 Honorary KBE laurels by Queen Elizabeth II, the U.K. government disclosed this week. The Honorary Knight Commander of the British Empire kudos for Iger and Williams were part of a number of honorary awards for foreign nationals that were approved for 2022 by the beloved monarch, who died Sept. 8 at age 96 after an historic reign. Iger was cited for “services to the UK/US relations,” presumably referring to his long run as a top Disney executive and the company’s notable presence in the global content business and U.K.-based film, TV and stage production. Williams, a five-time Oscar winner and an accomplished conductor, was cited for his many years of “services to film music.”

EXCLUSIVE: Snagging some of the best and the brightest from Disney, Netflix and Paramount, law firm Yorn Levine is expanding, again.

Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Netflix, Peacock, Discovery+ and even more streaming services, there’s no shortage of options when choosing what to binge-watch this weekend. However, sometimes the amount of great film and television available to stream can be overwhelming and lead to scrolling aimlessly — hoping to land on that perfect piece of content.  Scroll no more! To help you out, ET has rounded up the best movies and TV shows to stream this weekend, including new arrivals, nostalgia-filled favorites and titles you may have missed the (well-deserved) hype on that are worth circling back for.From a new season of  to new episodes of The Handmaid's Tale and HBO's, we’ve got your content covered this week. For even more recommendations, make sure to check out our guide for everything new on Prime Video, Hulu, Peacock, Apple TV+ and more this month.

Luthen Rael, played by Stellan Skarsgård, has a terrific opening line in the third episode of the “Star Wars” spin-off prequel series “Andor.” “Cassian Andor,” he says with a dramatic pause, “the Empire is choking us so slowly, we’re starting not to notice. What I’m asking is this, wouldn’t you rather give it all to something real?” Rael’s talking about two things.

Wendell & Wild, the upcoming Netflix movie directed by Henry Selick that features the voices of Jordan Peele, Angela Bassett, Keegan-Michael Key and Lyric Ross, has been selected as the opening-night film for Animation Is Film, the growing animation festival that will run October 21-23 and October 29 at the TCL Chinese 6 Theaters in Hollywood.

Social media is abuzz in overseas markets where Disney today began rollout on a remastered version of James Cameron’s original 2009 Avatar, and as audiences are being treated to sneak footage from the upcoming sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water.

EXCLUSIVE: In a month where awards contenders announced themselves at film festivals, make room for Amsterdam, David O. Russell’s first film in seven years. A murder mystery with intrigue, espionage and crackling dialogue, the film stars Christian Bale, John David Washington and Margot Robbie as a trio of lifelong friends. The title is where their bond is forged, after the soldiers are sent there to heal from WWI combat injuries, and where she is the nurse who patches them up. The men return home to their lives in Manhattan — Bale a doctor who goes out of his way to help wounded vets, and Washington a lawyer — as their nurse pal vanishes, for a while anyway. When they become accused in a murder, leading to growing intrigue and a conspiracy that unfolds at a brisk pace.

While the Emmys drew mixed reviews, the film festivals closed to strong applause this week, not only for their movies (we’d forgotten some) but for their star turnout (forgot a few of them, too).

With a bit more than a year left before Disney can buy out Comcast’s financial stake in Hulu, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts pushed back on Disney CEO Bob Chapek’s suggestion that Hulu’s value has declined amid public market skepticism about streaming.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Is there a bidding war brewing over Hulu? Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts called Hulu a “phenomenal business” — and said that if Disney were willing to sell it, the cable and media company would be interested in buying it out. “Hulu’s a phenomenal business. Its scale is fantastic. It has wonderful content,” Roberts said, speaking Wednesday at Goldman Sachs’ Communacopia + Technology Conference 2022 in San Francisco. “If it was up for sale, Comcast would be interested” in buying 100% of Hulu, and “others would I think as well.” Disney currently owns 66% of Hulu and Comcast holds the remaining 33% stake. As of July 2, 2022, Disney recorded Comcast’s interest in Hulu as being worth $8.6 billion, implying a valuation of $25.8 billion. In an auction-style sale of Hulu in its entirety, Roberts suggested, Hulu may fetch more than that.

Disney CEO Bob Chapek, coming off a promotional blitz at the company’s D23 conference last weekend, reiterated many of those messages for a Wall Street audience but struck a more confident tone than ever before in outlining the future of Hulu.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Disney+ was first launched three years ago with the “pretty absurd” low price point of $6.99 per month, CEO Bob Chapek admitted. Now the company is gearing up to raise prices again on the flagship streamer — but Disney+ still offers a better price/value equation than competitors, he said. “I think we’re way underpriced relative to the value we provide,” Chapek said, noting that the core Disney+ service without ads will continue to be priced below several competitors. The CEO was speaking Wednesday at Goldman Sachs’ Communacopia + Technology Conference 2022. Amid rising inflation, Disney has announced price increases coming in the fourth quarter of 2022 for Disney+ and Hulu, as well as a December launch for the ad-supported Disney+ tier in the U.S. Disney+ Basic, the name of the plan with ads, will launch Dec. 8 in the U.S. for $7.99/month. That’s the price of the current ad-free version of Disney+, which at that time will bump up to $10.99/month, a 38% increase, and will be known as Disney+ Premium.

Disney CEO Bob Chapek is opening up about ESPN as activist investor Daniel Loeb had been pressuring the company to spin off the sports network.

reported Sunday.“We have a better understanding of ESPN’s potential as a standalone business and another vertical for Disney to reach a global audience to generate ad and subscriber revenues,” Loeb tweeted Sunday. “We look forward to seeing Mr.