Legendary Star Wars Creator Picks a Side in Proxy Battle for Disney
Who says the House of Mouse can’t produce a riveting spectacle in 2024?
In a scene ripped straight out of a well-known Marvel Comics arc, Disney appears to be on the verge of a full-blown civil war, if reports from The Hollywood Reporter are to be believed.
And prominent names among the shareholders are picking sides.
To rewind a bit, it’s hardly any secret that Disney is not in the best shape right now — for a number of reasons.
Streaming is not exactly thriving, the box office has somehow been even less kind than streaming and even the theme parks aren’t quite what they used to be.
Compounding matters is the fact that Disney leadership appears both unwilling and unable to actually respond to those crises with a shred of introspection.
Given all the above, it should come as little surprise that some shareholders are not exactly enamored with the direction the company is headed.
Similar dubious circumstances in 2004 paved the way for a proxy battle two decades ago, and now that specter rears its head again in 2024.
“Disney is once again facing an activist proxy fight at a moment of weakness, with Nelson Peltz’s Trian Partners (backed by former Marvel chairman Ike Perlmutter’s $3 billion or so of Disney stock) aiming to put Peltz and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo on the board, and another activist, Jason Aintabi’s Blackwells Capital, nominating three directors of its own,” THR reports.
And to be clear, this isn’t a matter of Trian Partners and Blackwells Capital teaming up against the effective incumbent, CEO Bob Iger. This very much appears to be a three-way battle of competing ideas about what’s best for Disney.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given his history there, Iger is swiftly amassing some powerful backers.
Iger already has the Disney family — all of them — backing him.
Another highly recognizable shareholder throwing his support behind Iger is the legendary mastermind of the Star Wars franchise, George Lucas.
“Creating magic is not for amateurs,” Lucas said in a Tuesday statement, per Deadline. “When I sold Lucasfilm just over a decade ago, I was delighted to become a Disney shareholder because of my long-time admiration for its iconic brand and Bob Iger’s leadership.
“When Bob recently returned to the company during a difficult time, I was relieved. No one knows Disney better. I remain a significant shareholder because I have full faith and confidence in the power of Disney and Bob’s track record of driving long-term value.
“I have voted all of my shares for Disney’s 12 directors and urge other shareholders to do the same.”
Axios points out that this is an extremely rare interjection from the normally cloistered Lucas.
Whether the endorsement of Lucas and the Disney family will be enough for Iger — though he will likely pick up support elsewhere, as well — will be seen when the annual shareholder meeting commences on April 3.
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