Disney CEO says it’s time to pull back on Star Wars series

Disney CEO, Bob Iger recently sat down for an interview with CNBC to discuss the recent releases of Disney-owned films, series, and other Disney-owned content. While speaking on Disney’s overall box office success, Iger also acknowledged the failures that Disney has recently experienced

"“We’re extremely realistic and I’m very objective at that business, and there have been some disappointments. We would have liked some of our recent releases to perform better.”"

When it comes to Star Wars content, it’s no secret that the recent Disney+ releases have been underperforming. Just looking at the Audience score on Rotten Tomatoes for series such as Obi-Wan Kenobi and the Book of Boba Fett will tell you why Iger had concerns regarding certain releases.

Iger was asked  If Disney plans on pulling back on both Marvel and Star Wars Content after stating that the number of series might have “diluted focus and attention” of many fans. Disney and Lucasfilm slated six different Star Wars series to release this year. Bad Batch Season 2, Mandolorian Season 3, Visions Season 2, and Young Jedi have been released. Ahsoka and Skeleton Crew are expected to release later this year as well. With half a dozen series released this year, Iger acknowledges that it may be time to slow down.

"“Yes”, Iger continued, “Not just to focus, but it’s also part of our cost containment initiative. Spending less on what we make, and making less.”"

Nevertheless, Iger was confident that creating Disney+ was not a mistake regardless of how certain releases faired on the Streaming Platform.

"“As it turns out, I think we made the right decision to go into that business. It will be a growth business for us. We will turn it around, I’m confident of that. It will become profitable and it will deliver growth for the company.”"

Iger also mentioned how he wishes for the company to build a better relationship with its viewers which he claimed the company currently lacks excluding its theme parks which have been a haven for many families for over a century. How Disney plans to execute a better consumer relationship in their streaming business remains to be unseen and is something that we will have to see play out over the next several years. Iger did not specify whether the company planned on only slowing down with the Marvel and Star Wars series, or if Disney intends to can them altogether. 

Although Lucasfilm has its struggles on Disney+, Andor along with Mandalorian Seasons 1&2 have shown that making a hit series that fans will almost unanimously enjoy is not Impossible if it’s done the right way. With that being said, It’s likely that Disney waits to greenlight any other Star Wars Disney+ projects until the releases of Ahsoka and Skeleton Screw have both passed in order to view how both projects were received by fans and act accordingly.