 | This page is currently beingsplit out. Consensus to split out this page into Criticism of Walt Disney Animation Studios has been found. You can help implement the split by following the resolution onthe discussion and thesplitting instructions. Process started inMarch 2024. |
 | This article needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(February 2022) |
The Walt Disney Company, one of the largest media corporations in the world, has been the subject of a wide variety of criticisms of its business practices, executives, and content. In particular, theWalt Disney Studios has been criticized for including stereotypical portrayal of non-white characters,sexism, and allegedplagiarism. Several of Disney's business ventures, which includetelevision networks,theme parks, and product lines, have also sparked controversy amongst groups of consumers and media outlets.[1]
In 1977,Roy E. Disney, the son of Disney co-founderRoy O. Disney and nephew ofWalt Disney, resigned as an executive due to disagreements with his colleagues' decisions at the time. As he claimed later, "I just felt creatively the company was not going anywhere interesting. It was very stifling."[2] However, he retained a seat on the board of directors. His resignation from the board in 1984, which occurred in the midst of a corporate takeover battle, was the beginning of a series of developments that led to the replacement of company president and CEORonald William Miller (married to Walt's daughterDiane Marie Disney) byMichael Eisner,Frank Wells, &Jeffrey Katzenberg. Roy soon returned to the company as vice-chairman of the board of directors and head of the animation department.
Eisner has been criticized for his management style. The bookDisneyWar byJames B. Stewart is an exposé of Eisner's 20-year tenure as chairman and CEO atThe Walt Disney Company. Stewart describes some of the following:
In 2003, Roy resigned from his positions as Disney vice chairman and chairman ofWalt Disney Feature Animation, accusing Eisner ofmicromanagement, flops with the ABC television network, timidity in thetheme park business, turning The Walt Disney Company into a "rapacious, soul-less" company, and refusing to establish a clear succession plan, as well as a string of box-office movie flops starting in the year 2000.
On March 3, 2004, at Disney's annual shareholders' meeting, a surprising 43% of Disney's shareholders, predominantly rallied by former board members Roy Disney andStanley Gold, withheld theirproxies to re-elect Eisner to the board. Disney's board then gave the chairmanship position toGeorge J. Mitchell. However, the board did not immediately remove Eisner as chief executive.
On March 13, 2005, Eisner announced that he would step down as CEO one year before his contract expired. On September 30, Eisner resigned both as an executive and as a member of the board of directors, and, severing all formal ties with the company, he waived his contractual rights to perks such as the use of a corporate jet and an office at the company'sBurbank headquarters. Eisner's replacement was his longtime assistant,Bob Iger.
In reaction to the2023 SAG-AFTRA strike,Bob Iger, the CEO ofThe Walt Disney Company, said the actors' demands were "not realistic", adding they are "adding to the set of the challenges that this business is already facing". Iger has been criticized for these remarks in light of his contract with Disney allowing him to earn as much as $27 million for 2023 between his salary and bonuses.[3] SAG-AFTRA presidentFran Drescher called Iger's remarks "repugnant" and "tone deaf."[4]
In October 2023, The Walt Disney Company pledged $2 million for humanitarian relief efforts inIsrael, following aseries of attacks by the militant groupHamas. Disney allocated half of this donation toMagen David Adom, Israel's national emergency medical service, and the other half to various non-profit organizations supporting children in Israel. Disney CEO Bob Iger condemned the attacks and described the donation as a means of supporting innocent people in Israel, particularly children.[5] In addition to the $2 million, Disney implemented a matching gift program for employees up to $25,000.[6] The move sparked backlash from Muslim audiences and critics, who argued that there is a lack of parity and concern given toPalestinians in the conflict, especially given the death of thousands of Palestinians including children.[7]
In 2020, Disney was criticised for filming in the autonomous region ofXinjiang, wherehuman rights abuses are taking place, and thanking the publicity department of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous RegionChinese Communist Party Committee and thepublic security bureau inTurpan in the credits of thelive-action remake of Mulan.[8][9] In a statement released, Disney said it was not responsible for the credit and attributed it to a 3rd party involved in the filming.[10] The public security bureau in Turpan was added to the U.S.Bureau of Industry and Security'sEntity List in October 2019.[11]
Formerly a subsidiary of Disney from 1993 to 2010,Miramax came under criticism for its editing, dubbing, and replacing the soundtracks of various foreign films that it released. One notable example isIron Monkey which, though released subtitled, had its subtitles altered to remove the political context of the story; had scenes trimmed and changed for violence and pacing; and had the soundtrack changed, removing the famousWong Fei Hung theme. Other films that they have altered in this way includeShaolin Soccer;Farewell My Concubine (theatrical release);The Thief and the Cobbler; andJet Li'sFist of Legend.
Peter Biskind's bookDown and Dirty Pictures details many of the Weinsteins' dishonest dealings with filmmakers.
Under the Weinsteins, Miramax had a history of buying the rights toAsian films, only to sit on them without releasing them for years. One example of this isHero, a 2002Chinesemartial arts film. It languished in Miramax's vaults for two years before it was salvaged with the intervention ofQuentin Tarantino, theGovernment of China and even Disney's executives. Another example isTears of the Black Tiger, aThai film originally released in 2000. After changing the film's ending,Tears of the Black Tiger sat in Miramax's vaults for five years until its rights were purchased byMagnolia Pictures in 2006, where the film was released unedited.
The potential editing ofPrincess Mononoke (1997) by Miramax has been the subject of rumor.[12]The Guardian's Xan Brooks reported in 2005 that the film's directorHayao Miyazaki was rumored to have sent the then–head of MiramaxHarvey Weinstein a samurai sword in the mail with the attached message "No cuts." In response, Miyazaki stated that "Actually, my producer did that." He also claimed that he "defeated" Weinstein's attempts to shorten the film's length.[13] The claim has subsequently appeared in other media coverage.[12] The media scholar Emma Pett wrote in 2018 that Miyazaki was "complicit in the construction of his auteur image" and the perpetuation of the rumor by these responses.[12] The studio executiveSteve Alpert wrote in his 2020 memoir that the producerToshio Suzuki, after procuring a replica sword from a shop in Tokyo, presented it to Weinstein at a meeting in New York. He then "shouted in English and in a loud voice: 'Mononoke-hime, no cut!'"[14]
One reason for the delays and non-releases of films was an accounting scheme that the Weinsteins used to shift potential money-losing films to futurefiscal years and ensure they would receive annual bonuses from Disney,[15] while trying to bar retailers from legally exporting authentic DVDs of the films.[16]
Defenders of the company point out that, prior to Miramax, most of the films purchased by the company would have had little to no chance of achieving U.S. distribution other than by very small distributors with minimal marketing expertise and funds. They also state that the purpose of the company's aggressive re-editing technique was always to try to help the films find a broader American audience than they might otherwise find. "I'm not cutting for fun", Harvey Weinstein said in an interview, "I'm cutting for the shit to work. All my life I served one master: the film. I love movies."[17]
Miramax is also accused of ignoring their more artistic, less audience-friendly films, especially when directors refuse to re-cut them to make them less challenging.Dead Man, which directorJim Jarmusch refused to re-cut, got a very limited release and critics have accused the Weinsteins of burying the film.[18][19]
Miramax was parodied in theKevin Smith filmJay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001), in which the studio attempted to adaptJay and Silent Bob's comic book characters,Bluntman and Chronic, into a movie, thus resulting in the duo traveling to Hollywood to stop them from making the movie. According to Kevin Smith, this film is a direct response to the controversy surrounding his previous filmDogma.[citation needed]
In 2023, it was revealed that the series opening credits sequence of theMarvel Studios seriesSecret Invasion was created usinggenerative artificial intelligence to showcase "the shapeshifting tone of the series" according to Ali Selim.[20] Reception to the sequence was met with backlash and disappointment from audiences and the animation industry. Major criticism includes that the argument was especially timely, since theWriters Guild of America voted tostrike after failed negotiations with theAssociation of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which included language about protecting writers against the use of AI in the writing process. Over the past eight weeks, the use of AI to replace laborers has come to the forefront of many discussions about the strike.[21][22] Storyboard artists and animators on the series expressed disappointment on the opening sequence.[23]
In the wake of Marvel Studios firing executive vice president of film productionVictoria Alonso for breach of contract in March 2023, criticism fromVFX workers were noted,[24] who had raised complaints of Marvel's "demanding post-production schedules". Alonso was described by some as a "kingmaker",[24][25] and "challenging to work with",[26] with Chris Lee atVulture reporting that Alonso was "singularly responsible for Marvel's toxic work environment" with VFX workers.[27][25] Alonso reportedly took days off to produceArgentina, 1985 instead of her post-production commitments for the variousMarvel Cinematic Universe projects, which in turn resulted in the need to delay several projects in 2022 and 2023.[26] However, Alonso was also described as the "epitome of professional" and supportive on set, with Joanna Robinson ofThe Ringer describing the reports as a "gross mischaracterization" and the opposite of Alonso's work.[24][28] Following Alonso's firing, visual effects vendors for the various MCU projects were working with producer Jen Underdahl.[29] In August 2023, more than 50 of Marvel's on-set VFX production crew filed a petition for an election to be represented by theInternational Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees with theNational Labor Relations Board.[30]
During the2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, it was revealed that several background actors for severalMarvel Studios,Walt Disney Studios,Lucasfilm andDisney Branded Television productions were scanned to train agenerative artificial intelligence to use their image on several episodes or films without their consent or additional payment. Alexandria Rubalcaba, toldNPR that she, and other background actors, stated this was the case for those who worked onWandaVision and expressed worry that "AI is eventually going to weed out background actors."[31] It was later asserted on social media that A.I. was used on a video clip fromDisney Channel Original MovieProm Pact, with users calling it "creepy", makes the film look like "hot garbage", and that AI is being used rather than paying workers "a living wage." However,The Hollywood Reporter later reported that the video clip did not use actors scanned by AI techniques but that the extras were created through other techniques usingVFX, and stated that these "digital extras involved the work ofCG artists" instead but was different from other films, as the digital extras were "more easily recognizable as inhuman.".[32][33][34]
A similar incident arose in May 2025, when Disney andEpic Games (which The Walt Disney Company owns a 9% in ownership stakes) announced that the video gameFortnite would bringDarth Vader as a non-playable character, withJames Earl Jones' voice being reconstructed using generative AI with permission by his estate to serve as an AI chatbot.[35][36] Prior to this, in 2022, Jones signed a deal with Lucasfilm, which allowed the company to utilize generative AI in future projects to recreate his voice.[37] This technology was first used in the Disney+ miniseriesObi-Wan Kenobi.[38]
The announcement of the Darth Vader AI chatbot was met with backlash from people who felt that while the appropriate permissions were obtained from the estates of anyone whose likeness is being used, it still felt creepy doing this one year after Jones' death. Similar comparisons were made to the digital reconstruction ofIan Holm[39][40] inAlien: Romulus.[41] Two days after the character was added, it was reported that several players in the game made the character sayracial andhomophobic slurs using Jones' voice. Shortly after clips of the chatbot saying such words went viral on social media, Epic Games pushed out a hotfix forFortnite that restricts the responses it can say.[42] On May 19, 2025,SAG-AFTRA filed a unfair labor charge against Epic Games and Llama Productions for infringing on the union’s right to negotiate major changes to its collective bargaining agreement.[43]
In November 2025 during The Walt Disney Company's Q4, Earnings Call,Bob Iger revealed that the company is working on user generated A.I. experiences and features forDisney+.[44][45][46] The announcement was met with backlash in several social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram.[47]The Owl House creatorDana Terrace spoke against Iger's announcement, calling him and the board of Disney executives "vultures" and to "pick up a pencil or die". Terrace would urge fans of her series to pirate the show as well to cancel their Disney+ subscriptions stating "I don't care".[48][49]
In December 11, 2025, it was announced that The Walt Disney Company inked a three-year licensing deal withSora (OpenAI) for short AI generated videos on Disney+.[50] The announcement was met with concern and skepticism across social media platforms. The following daySAG-AFTRA,Writers Guild of America andThe Animation Guild sent an open letter to The Walt Disney Company stating their concerns about the licensing deal with WAG mentioning that the deal is a ‘Theft of Our Work". SAG-AFTRA would mention that they "will closely monitor the deal and its implementation to ensure compliance".[51][52][53] The following weekPolygon will make a reference to the deal in their review of the short film "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 – Lost in New Jersey" produced byParamount Pictures,Point Grey Pictures andNickelodeon Movies, calling the short "timely" and "yet, as Mickey Mouse seems content to accelerate AI’s oncoming judgement day, another group of legacy characters are taking a katana-pointed stand in opposition".[54]
In February 3, 2026 during an interview withABC News,Josh D'Amaro who will succeed Bob Iger aschief executive officer (CEO) of the Walt Disney Company on March 18, 2026 mentioned that AI will not replace human creativity during his ternure at the company stating “The reason this company is so special is because of how creative we are, and the human beings that are generating that creativity. In my mind, that never gets replaced."[55]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding missing information.(December 2024) |
ABC Daytime scrapped aOne Life to Live storyline which was to depict a school shooting rampage on the day theVirginia Tech massacre occurred on April 16, 2007.[56] In August 2009, Frons announced that the production ofAll My Children would move fromNew York City toLos Angeles by the end of the year.[57][58]
On April 30, 2004,Nightline hostTed Koppel read the names of the members of theUnited States Armed Forces who were killed inIraq. This prompted controversy fromconservatives, who believed that Koppel was making a political statement, and fromSinclair Broadcasting Group, which felt that ABC was undermining the Iraq war effort.[citation needed] Others, including aThe Washington Post television columnist, thought it was aratings stunt forsweeps, and indeedNightline was the highest-rated program during that time period, and had about 30% more viewers than otherNightline programs that week. Sinclair stations did not air the program. Koppel repeated the format on May 28, 2004, reading the names of service members killed in Afghanistan, and on May 30, 2005, reading the names of all service members killed in Afghanistan or Iraq between the last program and the preparation of the program. This time, Sinclair stations aired the program as scheduled.[citation needed]
In the wake of the job cuts, a significant controversy erupted online in May 2010 after it was announced the former VP of news coverage, Mimi Gurbst, was leaving the network to become a guidance counselor.[59] A story in theNew York Observer reported that Gurbst was a "cherished" mentor inside the news division.[60] Reporters who closely follow TV news observed that a large number of current and former ABC News staffers went online to vigorously respond that Gurbst had helped perpetuate a negative culture with ABC News.[61][62]
ABC aired the controversial two-part miniseriesThe Path to 9/11 in the United States on September 10, 2006, at 8 p.m. EDT and September 11, 2006, at 8 p.m. EDT. The extensive pre-broadcast controversy over the film has included disputes over the accuracy of its dramatization of key events, as well as calls by historians and from former Clinton and Bush administration officials for ABC to re-edit part of the film or to not broadcast it at all. According to the official statement released by ABC on September 7, 2006, the film is a dramatization, not a documentary, drawn from a variety of sources, including the9/11 Commission Report, other published materials, and personal interviews.[63]
The main source of the controversy stems from portions of the film concerned with theClinton administration in the 1990s. Critics say that certain dramatized scenes tend to suggest that blame for theevents that took place on September 11, 2001,lies with Clinton and hiscabinet. One example cited is a scene in which then-National Security AdvisorSandy Berger does not approve of the order to take out a surroundedOsama bin Laden, tells the squad inAfghanistan that they will have to do the job without official authorization and then hangs up the phone. According to Sandy Berger and others – including conservative author and Clinton criticRichard Miniter – this never happened.[64]ScreenwriterCyrus Nowrasteh has now admitted that the abrupt hang-up was not in the script and was improvised.[65]
Alexis Debat, a consultant for ABC for years and also a writer forThe National Interest, resigned from ABC in June 2007 after the broadcasting company discovered that he did not have a Ph.D. from theSorbonne as he pretended.[66] Furthermore, in September 2007, the French news mediaRue 89 revealed that he had made at least two bogus interviews, one ofBarack Obama and another ofAlan Greenspan, both published in the French magazinePolitique internationale.[67][68] This in turn also led to his resignation fromThe National Interest.[66] Debat had specialized in reports onterrorism andnational security for the past six years (writing, for example, on theJundallah Balochi and Sunni organization).[66][69]
On March 2, 2010,WABC-TV in New York, along with Philadelphia sister stationWPVI (carried in Mercer, Monmouth, and Ocean counties), stated that they would pull their programming fromCablevision on March 7, 2010 (at midnight), unless a new payment structure was implemented for its network programming. Cablevision responded by citing WABC-TV and WPVI's free, over-the-air accessibility. Cablevision spokesman Charles Schueler stated, "It is not fair for ABC-Disney to hold Cablevision customers hostage by forcing them to pay what amounts to a new TV tax."[70] Also that day, Cablevision announced through e-mail that their entire film catalog of on-demand movies would be available without charge until midnight that evening as an apology to their customers.[71]
On September 17, 2025, theAmerican Broadcasting Company (ABC) and its corporate parent,The Walt Disney Company, suspended production of thelate-night talk showJimmy Kimmel Live! indefinitely, following criticism fromconservatives and public pressure fromTrump administration officials over thehost and comedian's monologue commentary about PresidentDonald Trump and his supporters' reaction to theassassination of Charlie Kirk.
The network's suspension of Kimmel sparked widespread backlash from political leaders and commentators, entertainers, entertainment industry unions, constitutional scholars and the public as well as boycotts against Disney/ABC and broadcast station ownersNexstar Media Group andSinclair Broadcast Group (whose respective decisions to pullJimmy Kimmel Live! from their ABC-affiliated stations over his monologue remarks prompted the network's own decision to suspend the program), and sparked debate about the erosion offreedom of speech in the United States amid calls by prominent conservatives to imposeretaliatory and disciplinary actions against people celebrating, justifying, or trivializing Kirk's death or encourage furtherpolitical violence.
There have been protests outside of Disney's offices both in Los Angeles and New York,[72] with calls for boycotting Disney and cancelling streaming services have spread across social media, while Google searches for "cancel Disney Plus" and "cancel Hulu" have spiked. On Instagram, posts on the topic have comments about how users want to "stand for something" and "boycott all Disney movies." Multiple Reddit threads about canceling Disney+ have over 1,000 comments.[73][74][75]
Fox Family Worldwide Inc. was sold fromNews Corporation'sFox Entertainment Group to Disney for$2.9 billion on October 24, 2001. The sale to Disney also included television channelFox Kids andSaban Entertainment (renamed BVS Entertainment). The entire network was officially renamedABC Family on November 10, 2001.[76][77][78][79]
The sale to Disney was considered one of the largest mistakes or problems occurring during the tenure of Michael Eisner. The failure was primarily due to the acquisition being done by the strategic planning department of Disney, without consulting anyone at ABC. The original plan was to use the channel to essentially show re-runs of ABC programming, but this plan was completely impossible since ABC had no syndication rights to the majority of their own programs. During this time, the network did air same-season repeats ofAlias,Less Than Perfect,Life with Bonnie, andThe Bachelor, almost all of which wereTouchstone Television productions (The Bachelor is distributed byTime Warner'sTelepictures). But in trying to change the focus of the channel, Disney also canceled several Fox Family series, likeState of Grace, and cut back on the network'sTV movies, which were among the few programs Fox Family was doing well with. The ratings tumbled further as the network became dependent on syndicated reruns and no original programs (save for original wrap-around segments aroundBachelor repeats, and children's programming).[80]
The next major plan was to reposition the channel to market it to college students, young women, or to a more hip audience under the nameXYZ, a reverse reference toABC. Disney soon found that the channel could never be renamed as such. The original sale from CBN to Fox/Saban contained a (now disputed) stipulation that the channel contains the word "Family" in the name forever, no matter who owns the network. To create XYZ, theFamily Channel would have had to cease to exist – terminating all existing cable TV contracts – and XYZ would have to be created as a completely new network. Cable companies would not be obligated to put XYZ in the spot vacated by the Family Channel. ABC scrapped the idea after discovering this clause.[81]
The name was revisited at one point in 2003, serving as a program block entitled "The XYZ", showing programs and movies aimed at the above groups. The network was also used as a buffer to burn off failed ABC series, such asAll American Girl, which featured formerSpice GirlGeri Halliwell.[82]
Since 2006, the critics have gone after programming on ABC Family. Most critics of the network feel it has gone from a family friendly to "too risqué", and shows likeGreek andThe Secret Life of the American Teenager are far too racy for "family viewers". Critics feel that the executives at ABC Family are only after viewership numbers and are unconcerned about showing younger generations in questionable scenarios in series and films. The main focus of criticism is on teenage pregnancy or underage drinking.[83]
Some critics disapprove of theDisney Channel marketing strategy led byAnne Sweeney,[84] president of the Disney Channel from 1996 to 2014.[85] Under Sweeney, the Disney Channel's programming was geared mainly towards preteen and teenage girls, with a decrease in animated programming.[86] Criticism was also aimed at removing almost all Walt-era and pre-1990s material from the channel in 2002 with the removal of the late-night "Vault Disney" block devoted to this material, which used to make up the majority of the channel's programming since its inception in 1983.[87][88] In 2008, Sweeney explained that Disney Channel, resulting from its multi-platform marketing strategy using television and music, would become "the major profit driver for the [Walt Disney] Company."[88]
The channel has also pulled (and sometimes re-shot) episodes that have featured subject matter deemed inappropriate for its target audience, due either to humor or to timing of real-life events.
Disney Channel faced backlash for hiringBrian Peck on the seriesThe Suite Life of Zack & Cody after he had been convicted in 2004 for sexually abusing a minor in 2001, who has since been revealed to be formerNickelodeon starDrake Bell. Disney Channel executives fired Peck after learning about his conviction and Peck's voice lines and on-screen credits on the series were replaced or removed. Disney Channel representatives have stated that Peck was never on set nor interacted with the show's cast or crew.[99]
ESPN has also been accused of overpaying for sports broadcasting rights, and thatWall Street analysts have raised concerns that this could be a major drain on Disney as a whole, since the amount of money that can be recuperated fromretransmission consent fees and advertising is limited; Disney still profits from the ESPN division but as of 2015 was cutting the network's higher-priced content to ensure long-term profitability.[100] In October 2015, ESPN laid off about 300 employees, citing the rights costs combined with the increasing trend ofcord-cutting.[101]
In November 2019, ESPN's owner The Walt Disney Company launched the streaming service calledDisney+. ESPN heavily promoted the Disney+ launch, leading to accusations that the network was sacrificing its journalistic integrity.[102][103] Examples cited by critics included aSimpsons-themed edition ofSportsCenter "Top 10", as well as NFL reporterAdam Schefter tweeting that Disney+ "will change lives". Writing inSlate, Laura Wagner[104] said that the "tongue bath" for Disney+ "represents a new inflection point in ESPN's decline from journalistic institution to entertainment company". Wagner added "This clumsy marketing blitz is an embarrassing exercise that turns ostensible reporters into stooges. It's also a stark example of just how flimsy ESPN's editorial vision has become." Meanwhile, Kelly McBride of the nonprofit journalism organization thePoynter Institute in an interview withThe Washington Post[105] said "You're turning the journalist into a salesperson and asking them to upsell the product. That's not the relationship you want the journalist to have with the audience member. You want that relationship to be about trust in the journalist's expertise."
The series premiere ofThe Kardashians, which debuted on April 14, 2022, titled "Burn Them All to the F*cking Ground", led to a public feud betweenKim Kardashian andRoblox. In the episode, Kim's son Saint West shows his mother an experience on the platform from a tablet that depicts an image of Kim crying across the skybox and baseplate. She claimed, however, that the person who uploaded the experience had also obtained footage of her andRay J's sex tape, and that she reacted by crying and claiming to later sue the company. Despite this allegation, the incident has been seen by many as a hoax, and was deceptively edited and staged as a way to cause uproar and false drama.[106]
A spokesperson forRoblox responded by saying "The referenced video was never available on our platform. We have strict moderation and policies to protect our community, including zero tolerance for sexual content of any kind which violates our community rules." and "The text reference to the tape that got around our filters was quickly taken down and fortunately visible only to an extremely small number of people on the platform. We also swiftly took down the associated experience and banned the community developer involved with the incident."[107] An individual close to the Kardashian family denied accusations of faking the event.[108][109]
| This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding missing information.(December 2024) |
Several other Disney+ titles that had been earmarked for removal likeA Spark Story, Marvel'sMPower and Marvel'sVoices Rising: The Music of Wakanda Forever stayed due a similar backlash.[110][111][112]
Between 1957, when the park first allowed dancing, and 1985, Disneyland only allowed pairs of men and women to dance on stage, barring single and group dancers (with the exception of children) as well as same-sex couples.[113] Disney claimed the policy had been put in place for crowd control and to avoid harassment of women, but also stated that it was "because some patrons might have found dance partners of the same sex offensive."[114][115] Teenage gay rights activist Andrew Ross Exler (now having the legal mononame Crusader) decided to dance with his friend Shawn Elliott on "Date Night," September 13, 1980, to protest the policy after his lesbian roommate was told she couldn't dance with other girls. The security guards responded to their "homosexual fast-dancing" by ejecting them from the park after telling Exler and Elliott, "This is a family park," and "There is no room for alternative lifestyles here."
Exler, who had notified the media before Date Night, sued Disney in court for discrimination under California's Unruh Civil Rights Act and won the suit in 1984; however, Disney later claimed that the ruling only applied to Exler and Elliott and continued to enforce the ban, particularly for same-sex "slow" or "touch" dancing, resulting in another lawsuit later in the decade that forced Disney to rescind the unwritten slow-dancing policy in 1989.[116][113]
Al Lutz, who has written about Disney since the 1990s, often writes about a perceived decline in value and quality at Disney's theme parks, chieflyDisneyland and its neighboring parkDisney California Adventure that opened in 2001.[117][citation needed] Much of his criticism was directed atPaul Pressler, the one-time president of Disneyland who later was named chairman ofWalt Disney Parks and Resorts, andCynthia Harriss, Pressler's successor as Disneyland's president. From 1996–2002, Lutz maintained a set of sarcastic Web pages calledPromote Paul Pressler!,[118] with the stated goal of "getting current Disneyland Resort President Paul Pressler promoted to a new jobsomewhere else within The Walt Disney Company!"
Lutz's July 2006 report on the alleged antics ofLindsay Lohan during a private party held at Disneyland for her 20th birthday[119] drew a rebuke from a representative for the actress, who said that reports of bad behavior were "complete bull".[120] This report brought Lutz's website, MiceAge, briefly into the spotlight, and established Lutz as a Disney watchdog in the mainstream media.
Disney California Adventure, originally named Disney's California Adventure Park until a name change in June 2010, was expected to draw large crowds when it opened in 2001. A January 14, 2001Los Angeles Times article titled "The most Jam-Packed Theme Park on Earth?" stated "Senior Disney officials acknowledge that there will be days when California Adventure will have to turn patrons away, particularly in the first weeks after the park opens, during spring break and again in the summer." The actual attendance was not close to the size that Disney expected for the park back in 2001.[121] The reasons for this have been speculated. They may include bad word-of-mouth from early visitors discouraged future visitors, stating the park was lacking in Disney-quality attractions,[122] and an estimated price tag of $600 million, with the park criticized for being built "on the cheap", with a small number of attractions and minimal theming.[123] Otherwise, many guests complained that a single day admission ticket to Disney's California Adventure cost the same as a single day admission ticket to Disneyland, yet contained fewer attractions, shows, and entertainment.[124]
Disney's chief executive officer, Bob Iger, went on record during the company's annual stockholder meeting on March 10, 2006, when someone asked about a potential third park being built in Anaheim. "We're still working to assure the second gate is successful", Iger said, referring to California Adventure. "In the spirit of candor, we have been challenged."[125]
On October 17, 2007, The Walt Disney Company announced a multi-year, $1.1 billion expansion plan for Disney's California Adventure Park.[126][127] Plans for the renovation and expansion were put on display for park visitors inside theBlue Sky Cellar at the Golden Vine Winery. Disney listened to the public and several of the attractions which drew criticism from the public were removed in the multi-year, multibillion-dollar redesign and expansion of Disney's California Adventure. Other rides were redesigned or replaced with a larger focus on Disney characters and stories.
On May 28, 2010, it was announced through the Disney Parks Blog that the park would also be receiving a name change, to Disney California Adventure, as well as a new logo. The new name took effect on June 11, 2010, appearing on park maps and banners, but it was first used in a commercial promotingDisney's World of Color a few days prior. World of Color premiered on June 11, 2010, as part ofDisney's Summer Nighttastic.[128]
Even in the planning stages, various Florida based animal rights groups andPETA did not like the idea of Disney creating a theme park where animals were held in captivity. The groups protested, and PETA tried to convince travel agents not to book trips to the park.[129] A few weeks before the park opened, a number of animals died due to accidents. TheUnited States Department of Agriculture viewed most of the cases and found no violations of animal-welfare regulations.[130] On opening day, the Orange County Sheriff's office sent about 150 deputies in fear that there might be a large protest, but only 24 protesters showed up. The protest lasted two hours, and there were no arrests.[131]
One year after the park opened and before theDisney World Millennium Celebration, The Animal Rights Foundation of Florida complained that a New Millennium's Eve fireworks show could upset the animals. A USDA inspector came to the park to find no problems with launching low-noise fireworks half a mile away.[132]
A former baseball umpire and an architect alleged that they approached The Walt Disney Company in 1987 with plans for a sports complex and that Wide World of Sports, which opened 10 years later, was heavily based on their designs. Disney claimed that, while the designs had some similarities, the complex was also similar to numerous other sporting facilities, and the concept of a sports park was too generic for any one group to claim ownership. The two men, represented in part by noted attorneyJohnnie Cochran, sued Disney inOrange Countycivil court. In August 2000, a jury returned a verdict for the plaintiffs with damages in the amount of $240 million, a fraction of the $1.5 billion sought.[133] Disney appealed the judgment, and settled out of court in September 2002 for undisclosed terms.[134]
TheWalt Disney World College Program is aU.S. nationalinternship program operated by The Walt Disney Company, located at theWalt Disney World Resort. The Walt Disney World College Program recruits students (18 years and older) and all majors for a semester-long paid internship program working at the Walt Disney World Resort. Critics argue that Disney is using the program as a source of cheap labor, as interns do the same work as veteran employees, but at a significantly lower pay rate.[135] In late 2007, a permanent Cast Member ran for president of the local union in Orlando. Part of his platform intended to get rid of the Disney College Program, claiming that the program "imports thousands of low-wage earners every year to work for Disney, depressing the local employment market and keeping wages down." Disney responded that the program is beneficial in the recruitment of cast members and that 8,000 workers out of 62,000 do not greatly impact operations.[136] It has been criticized also for its lack of union representation and denial of insurance benefits by the company.
In August 2024,Disney Experiences announced atD23 that a new land based on theMonsters Inc. franchise was in the works forDisney's Hollywood Studios, the announcement was met with speculation where the new area was going to be with the Muppet Courtyard area being a key location.[137][138] In November 2024, Disney officially announced thatMuppet*Vision 3D at Hollywood Studios would close alongside the rest of Grand Avenue to make way for theMonsters, Inc. themed area, stating that they were "having creative conversations withThe Jim Henson Company to explore ways to preserve the film and other parts of the experience for fans to enjoy in the future."[139] In January 2025, Disney announced thatMuppet*Vision 3D would close on June 8, 2025.[140]
The announcement of shutting downMuppet*Vision 3D was heavily criticized by fans and historians within the theme park community specially key member figures like Kevin Perjurer from theDefunctland series mentioning that the shut down was "heartbreaking" as the ride had many contributions within the theme park industry as well being one of the last projects thatJim Henson did before dying.[141] In May 2025, Walt Disney World confirmed that they would be recording the show to aid with preservation purposes. Cast members were allowed to sign up to be part of the taped audience, which took place on May 14.[142]
In 2017, The Walt Disney Company and two of its subsidiaries reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor to pay $3.8M to 16,339 employees of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. Inc and Disney Vacation Club Management Corp. After Disney had started charging employees for their costumes, the income of many employees fell below the federal minimum wage. The resorts were also found to be in violation of overtime and payroll recordkeeping regulations.[143]
In October 2023, a patron of Walt Disney World Resort had asevere allergic reaction and died after eating at a restaurant on the Florida property. Her husband filed awrongful death lawsuit in February 2024, alleging negligence as the couple had been assured her order would be free of allergens. Attorneys for Disney sought to dismiss the case, arguing that the patron had agreed to settle any disputes witharbitration when he signed up for a free trial ofDisney+ and agreed to its terms and conditions.[144][145] In August 2024, a Disney representative stated that as the resort restaurant "is neither owned nor operated by Disney", the Walt Disney Company should not be included in the lawsuit.[146] On August 19, 2024,Josh D'Amaro, Chairman ofDisney Experiences announced that Disney would "waive [their] right to arbitration", stating that, “At Disney, we strive to put humanity above all other considerations."[147]
Just before the grand opening, the park was criticized for overestimating the daily capacity limit.[148] The problem became apparent on the charity preview day on September 4, 2005, when 30,000 locals visited the park. This event turned out to be a disaster, because there were too many guests for the park to accommodate. Wait times at fast food outlets were at least 45 minutes in length, and wait times at rides were two hours in length.
During the Chinese New Year 2006, many visitors arrived at the park in the morning bearing valid tickets but were refused entry, because the park was already at capacity. Disgruntled visitors attempted to force their way into the park or gain access by climbing over the barrier gates.[149] Disneyland management was forced to revise their ticketing policy and designated future periods close to Chinese public holidays as 'special days' during which admission would only be allowed through a date-specific ticket.
Officers from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, who were asked by Disney staff to take off their badges and caps in order to enter the park, left park visitors feeling very uneasy. The officers investigated a food-poisoning case in the park's restaurants.[150] The chairman ofLegco's food Safety panel,Fred Li, described the incident as shocking and called on the director of the department to take follow-up action against Disney. Hong Kong Disneyland says that what happened was inappropriate and has apologized for the incident. The Secretary for Justice has since said that the government did not have enough evidence to make a prosecution, thus dropping the case.
As at other Disney theme parks, visitors to Hong Kong Disneyland have their fingerbiometrics scanned at the entry gate. Visitors are not warned of the policy beforehand. Scanning is done of all visitors older than 10 years of age, and is used to associate ticket media with the person using it. The company claims that "the 50 sample points from the surface of a guest's finger ... do not contain sufficient information to recreate a fingerprint image." Nonetheless, forensic specialists note that the data collected are more than adequate to establish a positive identification.[151]
Disney originally planned to serveshark fin soup, a traditional Chinese delicacy, at wedding banquets.[152] Animal rights groups protested in June 2005, citing the declining shark population in global waters and the cruel methods sometimes used of cutting the fin and discarding live sharks back into the sea.
At first, Disney removed shark fin soup from its menu, but said that it would still offer the soup if their clients insisted on having it served at their wedding. They said they would distribute leaflets about shark conservation in order to discourage the choice.[153]
However, after constant and continuous pressure from both environmental groups and animal welfare groups,[154] shareholders concerned about the company's image, Disney announced on June 24, 2005, that shark fin soup will not be served at all, because, according to their press release, "After careful consideration and a thorough review process, we were not able to identify an environmentally sustainable fishing source, leaving us no alternative except to remove shark fin soup from our wedding banquet menu".[155]
Fish aroundMa Wan died as a result of land reclamation.[156]
Disney's PhotoPass is a professional photography service offered at Disney theme parks, water parks, and resorts. Photographers positioned at locations in the theme parks, dining events at the resorts, and at theBibbidi Bobbidi Boutique atDowntown Disney are linked to a free card containing a unique serial number. Guests can view or purchase PhotoPass pictures at locations in the parks (generally near the park entrance) or online by registering the card's number.[157][158]
Customers have complained about the difference in advertised prices, particularly of Photo CD products, and the actual cost. Disney has responded that advertised specials apply only to products purchased at the parks and do not apply to the website.[159]
On December 24, 2006,Peggy Orenstein published "What's Wrong With Cinderella?" inThe New York Times. In her article, Orenstein discussed her concerns about the effects of princess figures on young girls. Orenstein used theDisney Princesses specifically to present many of her points. Orenstein also noted the pervasive nature of princess-related merchandise and that every facet of play has its princess equivalent.[160]
Other sources have also voiced concern that the franchise could possibly give young girls the wrong message. However, other parents who have young daughters say that they would eventually grow out of this phase.[161]
Page 16 ofCaptain America #602 (March 2010) depicted an anti-tax protest march inIdaho in which one participant held a sign reading "Tea Bag the Libs Before They Tea Bag You", with a caption containing the words of an off-screenAfrican-American superhero, theFalcon, telling Captain America, "I don't exactly see a black man fromHarlem fitting in with a bunch of angry white folks."[162][163][164] The cartoon drew the condemnation of Michael Johns, a board member of theNationwide Tea Party Coalition.[163]
Marvel Comics Editor-in-ChiefJoe Quesada characterized the sign as inadvertent and as "something that we need to apologize for and own up to."[165] Quesada explained that with a printing deadline looming, the comic's editor noticed that the protest group's signs on the original art were empty, and the editor "asked the letterer on the book to just fudge in some quick signs. The letterer in his rush ... looked on the'net and started pulling slogans from actual signs", including a "Tea Bag" sign.
Following the issue's printing, Marvel staff "caught the mistake" and "spoke to the letterer, [who] was mortified at his mistake and was truly sorry as he had no political agenda." Quesada said Marvel "removed the sign from the art files so that it no longer appears in future reprints of the title or collections. So, while the crowd protesting has nothing to do with the villains in the story, we in no way meant to say they were associated with the Tea Party movement."[165]
On December 21, 2012, Disney acquiredLucasfilm (and as a result, the rights to theStar Wars franchise;Skywalker Sound; andIndustrial Light and Magic) as a subsidiary for the price of $4 billion.[166] Lucasfilm andStar Wars in general were evaluated to decide upon how each area was to be approached.
AfterDark Horse Comics lost the rights to createStar Wars comics, Marvel Comics gained the rights as a subsidiary in the area of expertise.[167] With the elimination of theLucasArts developing arm,EA Games is being entrusted to makeStar Wars video games in the future.[168] The well-regarded animated TV seriesStar Wars: The Clone Wars was cancelled a few seasons from the end of its run,[169] in order to shift the series' team toStar Wars Rebels, a new animated TV series created forDisney XD, set approximately five years before the events ofStar Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope.[170] They eventually revivedClone Wars for a final season.[169]
Furthermore,Tor.com asserted that book consumers were not given the option of two universes to read from, the first of which is what many of them have been reading about for over 40 years and have grown to love and the second of which is Disney's attempt to unify things under one controllable banner;[171] leaving fans of these books to only read new entries in the Unified Canon, and if they wish to see the continued growth of theStar Wars universe, the previous universe is now stuck in limbo.
On June 20, 2017,Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the directors of the filmSolo: A Star Wars Story, left the production of the film five weeks before filming ended. Lord and Miller cited "creative differences" for their reason to part ways with the film. Many compared this toEdgar Wright stepping down as director ofAnt-Man due to creative differences withMarvel Studios.[172] Three months later,Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker directorColin Trevorrow stepped down as director under similar circumstances and was replaced withStar Wars: The Force Awakens directorJ. J. Abrams.[173]
In November 2020,Alan Dean Foster, an author who wrote several novelizations ofStar Wars, said that Disney was refusing to pay royalties on the novels, or even recognize that contractual obligations existed. Disney was censured by the president of theScience Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America,Mary Robinette Kowal, as well as other prominent authors.[174][175][176]
Disney has been accused of human rights violations regarding the working conditions in factories that produce their merchandise.[177]
In 1996, the New York-based National Labor Committee released a 12-page report that severely criticized Sears, Walmart, and The Walt Disney Company.[178]Haitian contractors producing Mickey Mouse and Pocahontas pajamas for U.S. companies under license with the Walt Disney Corporation are in some cases paying workers as little as 15 gourdes (US$1) per day–12 cents an hour– in clear violation of Haitian law,
said the NLC. One factory owner testified that workers underperform because they cannot eat enough. Besides living on starvation wages, Haitian factory workers face sexual harassment and exceptionally long working days. The report claimed it would take a seamstress 1,040 years to earn what then-CEO Michael Eisner earned in one day.
In 2012, the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights released the report "Toys From Hell".[179] It describes how workers at Dream International factory in Shenzhen, China work 117-hour weeks in a filthy, hot, ratty environment where they are constantly screamed at by supervisors, and only earn $1.39 per hour. The report also describes workers as expected to lodge in dirty and overcrowded dormitories, where they are served below-par food. The Dream International factory was also considered to be a fire hazard.
Animal welfare groups have criticized Disney for their care of, and procedures for, wild animals at the Animal Kingdom theme park.[180]
In 1989, Disney was charged with sixteen state and federal counts of animal cruelty relating to the abuse of vultures and other birds at its Discovery Island zoological park.[181] According to investigators, employees shot at hawks, clubbed vultures to death with a stick, and destroyed nests and eggs. The park's supervisor supposedly sanctioned the abuses. Most striking were the deaths of fifteen vultures crammed into a tiny, overheated shed for days with limited food and water. Authorities also discovered 72 vultures confined in a windowless, airless shed, which legally speaking was only big enough for three vultures. Disney made a deal and in exchange for the dismissal of three federal charges, it pleaded guilty to a simple misdemeanor and agreed to pay a total of $95,000 to various institutions.[182]
Disney has been criticized for using purebred dogs in movies such as101 Dalmatians. Animal rights groups claim movies with purebreds create an artificial demand for purebreds from people who may not be prepared or temperamentally suited for the animals, many of whom end up abandoned or surrendered to animal shelters or rescue groups.[183][184][185]
On December 14, 2017,[186][187] Disney agreed to acquire21st Century Fox's motion picture business, cable and direct satellite entertainment networks, that was completed on March 20, 2019.[188] Under the terms of the agreement, Disney acquired the20th Century Fox film and television studios and related assets; cable and satellite networks includingFX Networks,Fox Networks Group; Indian television broadcasting companyStar India; stakes inNational Geographic Partners andHulu, and other assets. Prior to the completion of the deal, Foxspun-off its news and broadcast businesses, includingFox News,Fox Business,FS1,FS2,Fox Deportes, and theBig Ten Network, theFox Broadcasting Company, andMyNetworkTV into the newly formedFox Corporation.[188][189]
This merger was subject to widespread criticism among critics, consumers, and businesses due to antitrust concerns. One of the biggest concerns is that unlike Disney's acquisition of Pixar, Marvel Entertainment, and Lucasfilm, the Disney/Fox deal was ahorizontal integration (in which a company owns a direct competitor) in contrast to avertical integration (in which two companies operate different stages for a specific finished product) like the mergers ofAT&T-Time Warner andComcast-NBCUniversal. Given Disney's already powerful box market shares, a combined Disney/Fox would give it a 39% theatrical market share and would strengthen Disney's already leveraging power over theater owners in its favor without regard to the negative effects on their businesses.[190][191]
Ownership ofBlue Sky Studios was assumed byThe Walt Disney Company as part of theacquisition of21st Century Fox. Two years later on February 9, 2021, Disney announced that it was closing Blue Sky Studios that April after 35 years of existence. A spokesperson for the company explained that in light of theCOVID-19 pandemic's continued economic impact on all of the company's businesses, it was no longer sustainable for them to run a third feature animation studio. This included the studio's film library and intellectual properties retained by Disney. In addition, production on thefilm adaptation of the webcomicNimona was canceled with other future films in development or early in production.
On April 11, 2022, it was announced thatAnnapurna Pictures had picked upNimona earlier in the year, and would be releasing it onNetflix in 2023.DNEG Animation was announced as the project's animation partner, and the film would end up being nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Animated Feature.[192]
The decision to close down Blue Sky was heavily criticized. Critics accused Disney of acquiring a once-competitor animation studio only to shut it down two years later as a way of eliminating their competition. Especially as the majority of the employees were fired without being absorbed into other Disney animation units. Another criticism has revolved around using the Blue Sky Studios IPs and characters for low-budget and poorly reviewed productions likeThe Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild.[193][194][195]
TheJonas Brothers and Disney Channel are parodied in theSouth Park episode entitled "The Ring" and play a prominent role in the episode's plot. In a television column written before "The Ring" aired,Lisa de Moraes ofThe Washington Post suggested that creatorsTrey Parker andMatt Stone were using the Jonas Brothers in the 13th season debut as a means of improving the show's ratings; Comedy Central executives, however, insisted that the Jonas Brothers fans do not fit intoSouth Park's demographic of males aged from 18 to 49.[196]
The Walt Disney Company, Disney Channel and the Mickey Mouse cartoon character are also prominently featured and spoofed in the episode;[197] even when Mickey Mouse says callous things or physically assaults people, he follows up most statements with the character's trademark high-pitched "Ha ha!" laugh, which in context comes off like a nervoustic.[198]
Reviewers and commentators have described "The Ring" as not just a parody of the Jonas Brothers, but also of the ethos of The Walt Disney Company.[197][198][199] The episode portrays Disney as a corporation using the ruse of family-friendly morals to disguise their primary motive, which is profit; reviewers and articles said this point is further illustrated by the use of Mickey Mouse, a cartoon symbol for the wholesome Disney image, as a foul-mouthed, contemptuous, greedy, all-powerful and violent character.[197][198]
Due to other speculation on the orientation and personal activities of the Jonas brothers, the episode continued to create a running gag on the effect of the Jonas brothers on young girls of the "tween" period, often provoking the image that they too would become like Mickey Mouse, in most unwanted characteristics. The episode further illustrates the greed of corporate culture by portraying Mickey as capitalizing on religion for profit, while secretly mocking it in a particularly cruel tone: "Even the Christians are too fucking stupid to figure out I'm selling sex to their daughters! I've made billions off of Christian ignorance for decades now! And do you know why? Because Christians are retarded! They believe in a talking dead guy!"[197]
In January 2016, two former employees filed suit against Disney,HCL Technologies, andCognizant, alleging the companies broke the law by colluding to bring in holders ofH-1B visas to replace American workers. In October 2016, federal JudgeGregory A. Presnell of the United States District Court in Orlando dismissed the lawsuits, stating: "none of the allegedly false statements put at issue in the complaint are adequate".[200]
In late February 2022, it was reported that Disney donated an estimated $200,000 to sponsors and cosponsors ofFlorida's Parental Rights in Education Act (known by its critics as theDon't Say Gay law).[201][202] On March 7, 2022, Disney CEOBob Chapek said that the company would not take a public stance on the bill, focusing instead on effecting change through its content.[201][203] After criticism of their stance by those affiliated with Disney, including the company's employees, Disney affirmed that they would challenge the bill.[204] In a possible act of retaliation, Florida GovernorRon DeSantis and Florida lawmakers threatened to repeal the 1967Reedy Creek Improvement Act, which established the area surrounding the Walt Disney World Resort, theReedy Creek Improvement District, as its own city.[205] On April 22, 2022, DeSantis signed a bill to dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District by June 2023.[206]
From 1990 to 2024, The Walt Disney Company had lobbied for copyright extension.[207][208] TheCopyright Term Extension Act delayed the entry into the public domain of the earliestMickey Mouse movies, leading detractors to nickname it "The Mickey Mouse Protection Act".[209] Opponents of the legislation consider it to becorporate welfare and haveunsuccessfully tried to have it declaredunconstitutional, claiming that such an act is not "necessary and proper" to accomplishing the Constitution's stated purpose of "promot[ing] the progress of science and useful arts".[210] They argue that, since most works bring the majority of their profits during the first few years after publication, extending the terms of copyrights provides little economic incentive except to a few owners of wildly-successful franchises.
Disney later faced legal criticism from Rearden LLC, which sued Disney after it was alleged that Disney used its MOVA Contour software without permission.[211] On December 21, 2023, a US jury based inOakland ordered for Disney to pay Rearden $600,000 in copyright damages after finding that the software was used to render the face of the Beast in the 2017 remake of Beauty and the Beast.[212] However, this was considered to be a minimal payout, as Rearden sought $100 million in damages and alleged the software was used without permission for more films, including Guardians of the Galaxy and multiple Avengers installments.[211]
CNNRutenberg was invoked but never defined (see thehelp page).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)The internet was already lighting up with users sharing screenshots of canceled subscriptions to Disney-owned streaming services or canceled vacations at Disney properties. / Protestors have also appeared outside the corporate headquarters in Burbank, Calif., while angry Disney+ and Hulu users have flooded social media accounts and customer service pages.
The company moves to transform Anaheim's resort district in the image of the popular Walt Disney World. But critics remain skeptical.
{{cite news}}:|archive-url= is malformed: timestamp (help)Photopass.
The 1998 extension was a result of intense lobbying by a group of powerful corporate copyright holders, most visibly Disney, which faced the imminent expiration of copyrights on depictions of its most famous cartoon characters.
Media related toCriticism of The Walt Disney Company at Wikimedia Commons