According to a new report from Reuters, activist investor Nelson Peltz criticized the Walt Disney Company for making movies dominated by female and Black actors, like The Marvels and Black Panther.
What’s Happening:
- Reuters is reporting that on Friday, Activist Investor Nelson Peltz, who is trying to get a seat on the board of the Walt Disney Company in an ongoing Proxy battle, said in an interview that Disney’s films have become too focused on delivering a message, and not enough on quality storytelling.
- In the interview, he reportedly took issue with two films from Disney-owned Marvel Studios, The Marvels and Black Panther. Peltz said in the interview, “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? Why can’t I have Marvels that are both? Why do I need an all-Black cast?”
- Nelson Peltz and his Trian Group are vying for two seats on the Walt Disney Company board – one for Peltz and the other for former Disney financial chief Jay Rasulo. Another activist firm, Blackwells Capital, is pushing for three Disney board seats as part of this ongoing Proxy battle.
- Disney has responded to these comments, with a spokesperson saying “This is exactly why Nelson Peltz shouldn't be anywhere near a creatively driven company."
- While Disney CEO Bob Iger himself has said Marvel has "made too many" film sequels, which "diluted" the quality, it was in his book, The Ride of a Lifetime, where he said he had pushed to diversify the Marvel films, which initially had been built around white male characters.
- Marvel Studios has released 33 films that collectively have grossed over $30 billion globally, and Marvel’s Black Panther is the sixth highest-grossing domestic release of all time.
- In further response, Disney released a new deck called “Oh, Nelson” and highlighted some of Peltz’s comments.
- Disney’s Annual Meeting of Shareholders, which is when the vote will end, is set for April 3rd.