Bob Iger can't be overly thrilled with his return to House of Mouse. His return last year continues to bring something new every day. Now Iger and the Disney Company are set to deal with yet another setback and Iger isn't holding back.
Talking with "Squack Box" on CNBC, Iger let it out on how he feels about the two strikes. Iger called the situation "Disturbing". - Via Variety.com
"It's very disturbing to me. We've talked about disruptive forces on the business and all the challenges we're facing". "Bob Iger
Iger pointed out specifically the still recovering economic situation that is being felt from two year's of COVID. Now, two strikes within a few weeks of each other are shutting down film production, television shows, and will inevitably result in more films either being shuttered or rescheduled.
After the Writer's Guild strike, several films were moved around including the 3rd through 5th installments of the next films in the Avatar series. While it hasn't been said yet, one would have to wonder if more changes are on the horizon.
Iger isn't thrilled with the new development stating that the SAG-AFTRA reps are not being "realistic" in their demands. What those demands are remain behind closed doors. The latest walk-out resulted from the studios bypassing the reps from SAG to bring in a federal moderator which boiled over to the point of the SAG members taking a vote to strike, that passed at 98%.
This is the first time since 1960 that both the SAG-AFTRA and Writer's Guild of America were striking at the exact same time.
While Iger may be speaking similar sentiments for other studio heads, his concerns are not without merit. Studios took massive hits at the box office during the COVID shutdown and even now, theaters are nowhere near as full as they used to be. Movies that traditionally would have made huge amounts of money are not losing at the B.O.