Disney Slams Rival Investor’s Controversial Comments On Black And Female Actors, War For The Mouse House Heats Up
Nelson Peltz is an 81-year-old investor and chairman of major corporations such as Wendy’s Company, Sysco, and The Madison Square Garden Company. He has described himself as a bully billionaire and has been fighting to join Disney’s board for the past several months despite many high-ranking Disney execs shutting him down at every turn.
Doesn’t Want All-Female Marvel Movies
Recently, Peltz made a series of comments demanding Disney cease its commitment to diversity, stating “Why do I have to have a Marvel that’s all women? Not that I have anything against women, but why do I have to do that?” and “Why do I need an all-Black cast?”
These comments seem to malign recent Disney outings such as The Marvels and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and highlight the dissonance between Peltz and his prospective coworkers at the global media giant.
Can’t Join The Disney Board
Walt Disney spokespeople have already argued that comments such as these are indicative that the billionaire should not be on the company’s board, as he shares a staggering difference in personal philosophy to the company’s mission statement.
In fact, one spokesperson argued that this aversion to empowering black and female-led stories is a key reason why Peltz should never be part of any creative process at all.
Hostile Takeover Of Board Seats?
Peltz is currently attempting a hostile takeover of two Disney board seats alongside former Disney financial chief Jay Rasulo, while other companies, such as Blackwells Capital, have placed bids for three seats on the Bob Iger-led board.
The annual meeting that will ultimately decide the corporation’s fate is scheduled for April 3, when existing board members will convene to cast their final vote.
Black And Female-Led Marvel Movies
Bob Iger has specifically championed the use of black and female-led Marvel stories, expressing on numerous occasions that Disney’s previous model of honing in on white male characters alienates certain audience demographics.
Iger has been majorly influential to Disney and Marvel studio in the past two decades, taking on the role of CEO in 2005, and only briefly stepping away back in 2021.
Iger and Marvel head Kevin Feige can be credited for nearly every big-picture decision that led to the enormous success of the MCU, though neither seems to impress Nelson Peltz.
Wrong Opinion?
If you’re a terminally online person who errantly believes that placing more powerful women and ethnic minorities on the big screen reduces the quality of a film, Nelson Peltz may be your Disney champion.
Of course, it remains to be seen what actual improvements a board member like Peltz would bring to the table, as he has openly criticized films such as 2018’s Black Panther, despite the film performing exceptionally with critics and audiences alike.
Black Panther is listed as the sixth highest-grossing domestic films of all time, and received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture.
Marvel’s Questionable Strategy
Despite the MCU taking a few questionable turns in recent years, with multiple films underperforming at the box office, it seems clear that the solution to the franchise’s problems is not Nelson Peltz, the bully billionaire.
Bob Iger himself has gone on record as saying too many recent Disney outings have diluted the high watermark of Marvel films, and has even passed down a demand to reduce the overall number of MCU outings released per year.
For now, all general audiences can do is watch and wait as the board make their decision on April 3.
Source: Reuters
