Disney CEO Bob Iger Confirms Start Of Layoffs, With Three Rounds Of Cuts Expected Before Summer

Isaac Perlmutter’s time at Disney had run its course and the former Marvel Entertainment chairman’s removal “was a necessary step in the direction of us creating a more efficient company,” CEO Bob Iger said. He said the decision was not due to Perlmutter’s support of activist investor Nelson Peltz.

Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), the chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, led a delegation of lawmakers last week for meetings in Hollywood and Silicon Valley, with an eye toward gathering information on how the two California-centric industries interact with Beijing.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor On Tuesday night, Jeremy Renner walked his first red carpet since his near-fatal snow plow accident. The “Avengers” actor was on hand at the premiere of “Rennervations,” his new Disney+ reality series about renovating used vehicles for underserved communities around the world. The event was held at the Westwood Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles. Using a cane, Renner arrived on the carpet at around 6 p.m., appearing alongside his family for photographs. After walking for a bit, the actor then took to a motorized scooter to assist him through press interviews.

Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger and other industry executives are meeting privately this week with members of Congress to discuss how to respond to China’s strong-arm tactics to stifle and censor filmmakers.Several members of the House Select Committee On the Chinese Communist Party attended two meetings with filmmaker groups Wednesday, and plan to meet Friday with Apple Inc.

Disney has a new streaming boss.

EXCLUSIVE: Disney’s international teams are braced for layoffs and content cuts.

Disney CEO Bob Iger said the company has reached a new stage of its evolution in streaming and will consider “on occasion” licensing some titles to third parties.

For the first time, Bob Iger is speaking out and addressing the ongoing battle between the company and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. He also answered a frankly bizarre question about the company’s so-called “woke agenda,” both with the kind of poise and composure that made him such a favorite of his employees as well as the shareholders, during the Disney Shareholders meeting.“Let me if you don’t mind let me address this issue which I haven’t really done much publicly. But I’d love the opportunity just to put it all in perspective.

A live-action reimagining of Disney Animation’s 2016 hit Moana is in early development at Disney, Dwayne Johnson revealed Monday. The announcement came in a pre-recorded message from Hawaii as part of Disney’s annual shareholder meeting led by CEO Bob Iger.

Bob Iger is back, debonaire, relaxed, articulate and talking up Disney IP via video in front of Walt Disney Word, where the company appears to have outmaneuvered Ron DeSantis for control. He also fianlly spoke his mind on the simmering feud, telling the company’s virtual annual shareholder meeting today that the governor’s apparent “retaliation” against Disney for exercising a right to free speech “is not only anti-business, but anti-Florida,” given the jobs, taxes, resources and revenue Disney provides the state.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Returned CEO Bob Iger made a rare public comment about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ moves to “punish” Disney for its position against Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” Bill last year during the company’s annual shareholders meeting Monday, calling the decision “not just anti-business, but anti-Florida.” “It seems like he’s decided to retaliate against us,” Iger said, referring to DeSantis’ power struggle with Disney in Florida, the home of Disney World, in an attempt “to punish a company for its exercise of a constitutional right.” “That seems really wrong to me,” he added. “We’re currently planning now to invest over $17 billion Disney World over the next 10 years,” Iger said, noting that Disney estimates this will lead to 13,000 new jobs within the company and “thousands of indirect jobs” in the state, thus bringing in more taxes for Floriday.

Members of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party plan to meet this week with Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger and Apple CEO Tim Cook, as well as screenwriters and other studio executives.

Disney has let go SVP and Chief Compliance Officer Alicia Schwarz, Deadline has learned, amid a major retrenchment at the company.

A Disney spokesperson has confirmed to Deadline that Ike Perlmutter is out at the company. Note, Permutter oversaw the consumer products division of Marvel, and isn’t part of the Kevin Feige-led Marvel Studios.

co-hosted a D23-themed podcast, “D23 Inside Disney,” along with Oh My Disney’s Sheri Henry. News of the ouster came from six separate sources with knowledge of the situation.

Disney has eliminated a small business unit focused on exploring the metaverse, part of its initial efforts to reduce its workforce by about 7,000 employees.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor As part of a companywide cost-cutting effort, Disney has axed its cross-divisional Next Generation Storytelling & Consumer Experiences group, which encompassed the Mouse House’s metaverse ambitions. The elimination of Disney’s Next Generation Storytelling & Consumer Experiences group, led by company veteran Mike White, affects about 50 employees, Variety confirmed. The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. A Disney rep declined to comment. The shutdown of Disney’s metaverse group came Monday with the first wave of the company’s move to slash 7,000 jobs under interim CEO Bob Iger, which is part of its attempt to reduce $5.5 billion in costs. Following this week’s layoffs, there will be a larger second round of cuts next month, Iger told employees in a memo Monday. A final round of layoffs will hit “before the beginning of summer,” according to Iger.

the Wall Street Journal reported Monday.The metaverse team, per WSJ, was tasked with “fiinding ways to tell interactive stories in new technological formats using Disney’s extensive library of intellectual property.” It employed approximately 50 people, all of whom have been let go, according to WSJ. However, the division’s boss, former Disney consumer products executive Mike White, remains with the company in an undetermined capacity.Representatives for Disney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from TheWrap.The move comes just over a year after Disney created the division under former CEO Bob Chapek.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Disney will begin layoff notices this week for more than 7,000 staffers whose positions will be eliminated as part of a deep cost-cutting effort that will be felt across all of the company’s key divisions. Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed Monday morning in a memo to employees that the layoffs will come in three waves, starting today. Iger disclosed the plan to significantly cut Disney’s overhead with massive staff reductions on Feb. 8. The cuts are expected to hit across the board and hit senior management levels as well as lower-level executives. “The difficult reality of many colleagues and friends leaving Disney is not something we take lightly. This company is home to the most talented and dedicated employees in the world, and so many of you bring a lifelong passion for Disney to your work here,” Iger wrote. “That’s part of what makes working at Disney so special. It also makes it all the more difficult to say goodbye to wonderful people we care about. I want to offer my sincere thanks and appreciation to every departing employee for your numerous contributions and your devotion to this beloved company.”

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Rob King, a senior executive at Walt Disney’s ESPN who had oversight of much of the company’s sports journalism, has abruptly left the Disney-backed sports-media giant. “After nearly 20 years with ESPN, I have decided the time is right for me to leave the company,: King said on Twitter on Tuesday “I’m looking forward to spending more time with my family and friends, and wish the company continued success.” The New York Post reported Tuesday that King departed after complaints were made to ESPN about harassing social-media posts. An ESPN spokesperson said the company would not comment on personnel matters.