- Bob Iger is looking to end the SAG-AFTRA Strike
- Conversations are advancing
- THIS is what Bob had to say
Disney CEO Bob Iger, who has been taken to task before for what some argued was unnecessarily aggressive language when addressing the strikes earlier this year, now thinks that the SAG-AFTRA strike will be over “relatively soon,” while appearing on CNBC ahead of the Disney earnings call.
"Let me begin by saying I have the utmost respect for actors. They’re an incredibly important part of The Walt Disney Company for obvious reasons. And we’ve been hard at work we the companies involved in this business, as well as SAG in trying to figure out a way to get them back to work. And I can only say that I’m optimistic that we’ll figure that out relatively soon," Iger said.
The signs are looking good
One-hundred-eighteen days into the labor action by the actors guild, Hollywood was bursting with confidence that an end to the strike was imminent. In particular, that joy came from the two sides getting closer in an agreement over the contentious issues of AI protections. It's something thar is completely galvanizing our modern times.
Iger told CNBC this about actors: "They’re an incredibly important part of The Walt Disney Company for obvious reasons. And we’ve been hard at work. We, the companies involved in this business, as well as the Screen Actors Guild, in trying to figure out a way to get them back to work."
In its fiscal fourth-quarter, Disney said that it recorded a $387 million loss for its direct-to-consumer unit (Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+), improved from a loss of $512 million last quarter. Iger has been moving ahead on cost-cutting and restructuring plans that he’s been implementing since his surprise return as CEO last November. "We’re on track to achieve roughly $7.5 billion in cost reductions," Iger said.
But Hollywood’s most recognizable company has been weathering headwinds both on the advertising side amid a broader slump and during a production slow down due to the industry’s dual Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
The lack of actors on set is hurting all the future ventures in Tinsel Town. "Long-term, meaning if the strike goes on much longer, it could become significant," Iger continued.
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"Obviously, we’d like to try to preserve our summer films. The entire industry is focused on that. We don’t have much time to do that." Disney recently bumped two of its higher profile 2024 titles, its live-action remake of 'Snow White' and Pixar’s new feature 'Elio' to 2025.
Along with Warner Bros Discovery’s David Zaslav, Netflix’s Ted Sarandos and NBCUniversal’s Donna Langley, Iger has frequently been directly involved in sometimes explosive SAG-AFTRA negotiations as one of the CEO’s Gang of Four.
Both Zaslav and Iger were eager to see a deal reached before today’s quarterly earnings results, studio sources tell us. WBD stock took a double digit drop after their earnings report this morning. Disney saw a 3.5% dip in after hours trading so far.
In any case, it's pretty clear that time is running out for a solution before the landscape of production changes forever...or ceases to exist!
