At the dawn of 2020, the Walt Disney Company was at the pinnacle of success. Its movies included the biggest blockbuster in cinematic history. Its theme parks had never been more popular. Its newly launched streaming service was an unmitigated success. Its portfolio of companies made it one of the largest media conglomerates the world had ever seen, with a global reach that was virtually unparalleled. Its future had never been brighter. Disney chairman Robert Iger seemed poised to pass the mantle of leadership, having firmly solidified the future of the company founded by Walt and Roy Disney nearly a century before.
Then the Covid-19 pandemic hit and Disney’s future suddenly did not seem so assured after all.
Join historian Jason Lantzer as he returns to the world of Dis-History and explores the company that Iger remade for the twenty-first century. What did all this success mean to the ideals that Walt had imbued into the company’s DNA—notions of crafting an American culture for distribution at home and abroad, of family-friendly entertainment in theaters and at theme parks, of synergistic experiences that both utilize and generate nostalgia? Could those ideals survive both the growth Iger had bestowed upon the company and a global pandemic?
With Walt Disney World as a backdrop, join Lantzer for one last ride into Dis-History.
