The phrase “get woke, go broke,” often used by conservatives, has been proven true by The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney. Since 1923, the entertainment behemoth has dominated the media industry with a revenue of $84.41 billion as of 2022. It has claimed some of the biggest networks like ABC, ESPN, and Marvel, while owning 4,900 live-action titles and 400 animation titles. Considering Disney’s sizeable following, it’s no surprise that the company has impacted not only entertainment but the economy, American culture, and most importantly, millions of children around the world. In fact, Disney+, a Disney streaming service, has 161.8 million subscribers from about 108 countries.
While fictional characters are brought to life, shaping the imagination of kids all over the world, “some families across the country are reconsidering their previously Disney-friendly stance in their homes or their lives.” This change of heart stems from Disney’s radical agenda, which is evident in more ways than one.
First, the content of Disney productions has drastically changed from their innocent princess-themed originals. Two of their most recent releases, “Lightyear” and “Strange World,” are case and point. As a result of these two films, Disney’s risky productions took a nosedive, costing them more money — $258 million — than they made. What happened (or didn’t happen) to create such a negative financial outcome for the world-renowned business? Many would argue the woke agenda that has trickled into their content is to blame.
In November of 2022, “Strange World” premiered at the El Capitan Theatre. While the film was labeled boring by most viewers, it still made headlines because of the main character’s LGBTQ identity — the first in Disney’s history. As the storyline goes, a young teenage boy falls in love with another boy, and his father responds with great support. “The film completely normalizes the fact that a boy may feel attracted to or love another person of the same sex,” one review stated. This film alone lost $152 million. In last year’s release of “Lightyear,” Disney took a gamble on two fictional characters sharing a same-sex kiss partway through. That cost them another $106 million in losses, and the movie was banned in 14 countries due to that one scene.
In response to the extremism Disney is pushing in seemingly every new project, parents have started expressing their frustration. “Thought about watching this with my 12 year old but had to turn it off within the first 10 minutes due to sexual references and political correctness,” one parent commented about the Disney+ movie, “Prom Pact.” “Can’t they let kids be kids? I mean, this is Disney.” As Meg Kilgannon, senior fellow for Education Studies at Family Research Council put it, “Movie makers and television producers can continue to push LGBTQ+ content on viewers, but they can’t force audiences to watch it.”
Another way Disney has mixed politics and fiction is through the ongoing conflict between Disney management and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R). In April of last year, Disney’s former CEO Bob Chapek belatedly opposed the Parental Rights in Education bill signed into law by DeSantis, which “prohibits Florida teachers from instructing very young students — those in kindergarten through third grade — about gender identity and sexual orientation.” The company went so far as to warn legislators, “Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts.”
The statement continued, “We are dedicated to standing up for the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ members of the Disney family, as well as the LGBTQ+ community in Florida and across the country.” Nearly a year later, despite losing their autonomous district at the hands of Florida leaders, the Walt Disney Resort in Florida is preparing to host a major LGBTQ conference this September, while Disneyland in California is set to host a LGBTQ event this June called “Pride Nites” which will be a part of the “After Dark” series.
Actors and actresses, who represent the Disney brand, have also spoken up expressing their views. Margaret Cho, who plays “one of the first LGBTQ characters in a full-fledged Disney movie” in “Prom Pact,” conveyed her opinion in an interview with Times of India, saying that she “would love to see trans characters and different types of people in roles of like Disney Princess, Disney Prince, and Disney everything.”
After Disney admitted to their goal of “queering” kids, they are now, quite literally, paying the price. As a result of their plummeting financial returns, “Entertainment giant Disney is set to eliminate up to 4,000 jobs as part of new CEO Bob Iger’s $5.5 billion budget cut plan as the company faces repeated box office bombs, billions in losses over its streaming service, and political setbacks due to its radical left-wing policies in Florida.”
Maybe Disney should have thought twice before openly grooming young children to embrace the dangerous sex and gender ideology parents oppose. “With family budgets stretched and little money for movie outings or subscription services, corporations who decide to placate radical interest groups rather than deliver content consumers are willing to pay for will have only their CEI and ESG scores to comfort them,” Kilgannon said.
