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DeepSummary
The podcast episode discusses Disney's struggles with its two major franchises, Marvel and Star Wars. After years of remarkable success with the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the acquisition of Star Wars, Disney overextended itself by rapidly producing too much content, straining its creative teams and leading to a decline in quality and fan interest.
Disney's demands for constant new content to feed its streaming service Disney+ caused the MCU to become oversaturated, with too many interconnected shows and movies that felt like "homework" for fans. Meanwhile, the Star Wars sequels received a divisive reaction, and Disney lacked a clear plan after the Skywalker saga ended, leading to a drought of Star Wars movies.
To course-correct, Disney is scaling back production, bringing back familiar directors like the Russos for Avengers movies, and allowing more creative freedom, as seen with the upcoming Deadpool/Wolverine film. For Star Wars, the successful Disney+ show The Mandalorian may lead to a theatrical movie, while Star Wars is taking a hiatus from the big screen until a clear path forward emerges.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Disney overextended its Marvel and Star Wars franchises by rapidly producing too much content to feed its streaming service, leading to creative burnout and a decline in quality.
- The rushed production of the Star Wars sequels, dictated by rigid release dates rather than creative needs, led to a divisive trilogy that lacked a clear path forward.
- To course-correct, Disney is scaling back production on both franchises, allowing more creative freedom, and bringing back familiar directors like the Russo brothers and Jon Favreau.
- The successful Disney+ series The Mandalorian may lead to a theatrical Star Wars movie, providing a fresh take on the franchise after its recent struggles.
- Disney's handling of the R-rated Deadpool/Wolverine movie suggests a willingness to embrace more creative risks and meta-commentary within its franchises.
- While the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars remain Disney's most valuable IPs, revitalizing them will require striking a better balance between business demands and creative needs.
- Disney acknowledges the error of overworking its creative teams and is now focused on quality over quantity, slowing down production to regain the franchises' former glory.
- The company is turning to trusted filmmakers like the Russos, Jon Favreau, and Sean Levy, allowing them more creative control to steer the franchises in a new direction.
Top Episodes Quotes
“If we look at the Force Awakens came out in 2015, last Jedi in 2017, and Skywalker in 2019, that's two years between each installment, and that just wasn't enough time. I mean, look what James Cameron has to do with Avatar. It takes him ten years to make an avatar film, right? These films are not easy to make in terms of just the visual effects needed and not to even go into the story mechanisms of these films. To not have those in place and then to feel like you had to reach those dates and you couldn't push off those dates was probably a headache for everybody involved.“ by Jeff Bach
― This quote from box office analyst Jeff Bach criticizes Disney's rushed production schedule for the Star Wars sequels, sacrificing quality for rigid release dates and highlighting one of the key issues that led to the franchise's creative struggles.“In our zeal to basically grow our content significantly to serve our mostly our streaming offerings, we ended up taxing our people way beyond where they had been. Not only did they increase their movie output, but they ended up making a number of television series, and frankly, it diluted focus and attention.“ by Captain America
― This quote from Disney CEO Bob Iger directly acknowledges the company's mistake in overworking its creative teams across movies and shows to feed its streaming platform, diluting quality and leading to the struggles faced by Marvel and Star Wars.
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Episode Information
Land of the Giants
Vox
7/31/24
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