Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz On Winning Back Princess-‘Frozen’ Toy Deal With Disney: “Big Brands Give You The Ability To Stand Out”
27.01.2022 - 00:23
/ deadline.com
Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz says today’s acquisition of rights to make dolls and toys stemming from Disney’s princess and Frozen will arm the company with more recognizable properties in a crowded marketplace.
“The importance of big franchises is going to become more critical than ever,” CEO Ynon Kreiz, who told Deadline in an interview after the deal was announced earlier today. Hasbro had previously taken the rights from Mattel in 2014.
Kreiz said the multi-year pact with Disney Consumer Products, Games and Publishing had “been in the works for a while.” Mattel already has had licensing deals with Disney for Pixar’s Cars, Toy Story and forthcoming spinoff Lightyear.
Investors cheered the news of the agreement, sending Mattel shares up 11% in morning trading, though it closed up a more modest 4% amid deteriorating market conditions.
The two Frozen feature films to date have grossed $2.7 billion at the global box office, the Nos. 1 and 2 all-time tallies in animation. Yet Kreiz is sanguine about a Covid-altered marketplace in which family films increasingly hit streaming either instead of or at the same time as movie theaters.
A theatrical run “is an important component” in a property’s potential value, Kreiz said, “but streaming is becoming mainstream. While you don’t have the initial impact of the theatrical release, you still have the opportunity to engage with consumers multiple times. Consumers watch a movie multiple times in a short window.”
The deal, which takes effect in 2023, covers characters from Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Brave, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, Mulan, Pocahontas, The Princess and the Frog, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Tangled, and Frozen. Also in the portfolio also includes