“It is my fervent hope that we quickly find solutions to the issues that have kept us apart these past few months, “said Bob Iger today of the Writers Guild and actors’ union’s strikes on Disney ’s earnings call. “And I am personally committed to achieve this result. ” The words and tone of the CEO’s words represent a drastic shift from what he said dismissively about the WGA strike and the looming SAGF-AFTRA strike just a month ago.
Of course, in the company’s 100 th anniversary, Wednesday’s earnings results and call come on the same day that the scribe’s 2023 strike breaks the 100 days that the 2007/2008 strike lasted and heads into almost uncharted territory. At 153 days, the 1988 writers’ strike remains the longest labor action in the WGA’s history, for the time being. Related Stories Breaking News Picket Line Regulars Bolster Solidarity Among Writers As WGA Strike Hits 100 Days Guilds From Pruned Ficus Trees To Blocked Sidewalks: The Obstacles Picketers Had To Overcome During 100-Day WGA Strike “Nothing is more important to this company than its relationships with the creative community …that includes actors, writers, animators, directors and produces,” the talent friendly Iger also stated today.
“I have deep respect and appreciation for all those who are vital to the extraordinary creative engine that drives this company and our industry. ” Unlike some other studios, Disney offered no break-out of cost savings today that it had accrued due to the strike. However, Iger did note in Wednesday’s mixed Q3 earnings report that Disney is “on track to exceed our initial goal of $5.
5 billion in savings. ” One of the few executives still in their top tier job from the last strike, there was a point early in this strike when some saw Iger as a white knight. Optimistically, the Iger cheerleaders hoped he would swoop in and bring the parties back to the table to make a deal.
Improbable to begin with, the notion of Iger as a champion of labor peace blew up into a million pieces during his now infamous CNBC sit-down of July 13. “There’s a level of expectation that they have that is just not realistic,” the past and present CEO told Squawk Box’s David Faber in a live interview from the billionaire and media moguls’ retreat at Sun Valley “And they are adding to the set of the challenges that this business is already facing that is, quite frankly, very disruptive,” he added, in what read to many like a “Let Them Eat Cake” moment with an extremely ill-considered backdrop. Clearly that was on his media-sensitive mind today.
The 72-year-old Iger’s CNBC misstep came one day after his two-year return to the Disney top job was extended until 2026 by the board. With the stock price still sagging, a generally “disappointing” box office, a multi-front war with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and 7,000 jobs cut in what was essentially a boardroom battle, Iger’s much heralded homecoming has proven a rather rank affair.
Since that July 13 CNBC interview, in which he also postulated selling off some linear TV assets, the usually mondain Iger has largely disappeared from public view, until today. On July 31, it was revealed that Iger had hired his former would-be successors Tom Skaggs and Kevin Meyers as consultants. Setting up what could end up being a Game of Thrones style succession showdown, the move to bring back the Candle Media co-CEOs was seen as a further dimming of Iger’s once golden status.
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From: deadline
URL: https://deadline.com/2023/08/bob-iger-wga-strike-potential-deal-disney-sag-aftra-100-days-1235458571/
