Bob Chapek on the future of Disney Parks and Galaxy's Edge Impact

[ajburk97]

Lots of insight into what's coming. Enjoy the watch.

[SanDiegoAl]

All I heard him say was: Money, money, money, money, and more money. We have lots and lots of IPs that makes us money. Blank canvas, money.
We own everything. Screw you. Money.

[jschwagl]

+1

I did hear him say, Brand, Brand, synergy, Brand too, that was somewhere after the third "money". He was very explicit about basing what they do on IPs.

[sbk1234]

I've never actually heard him speak before. Holy crap! He's annoying enough to be a politician.

[Mr Wiggins]

So to recap... Iger hires Eisner's Chief Financial Officer, Tom Staggs, to run Disney Parks... Staggs greenlights Avatarland and Star Wars Land... Iger later kicks Staggs out and hires Bob Chapek from Consumer Products to replace him... Chapek reskins the Tower of Terror, greenlights Summer of Heroes, slashes Staggs' Star Wars Land budget, AND becomes the PR spokesman for the new Star Wars Land, as if it had been his idea all along... while at the same time blueprints are revealed of Chapek's next cheapout, a TSMM-style clone for a Spiderman ride.

You can't make this stuff up, folks.

[Blurr]

I can't even bring myself to watch the video. Seeing his face is enough disappointment for one day.

[Jim in Merced CA]

He’s the guy who should address stockholders at an inside business meeting - not to the general public. Portfolios? Blecch!

[Mr Wiggins]

For anyone who can't make it through the video, here's the transcript (from the video posted on YouTube May 29 by Theme Park Insider):


CHAPEK: As you know, we have unbelievable franchises that we can choose to employ to build our guest experiences. Because 40 years ago, George Lucas created Star Wars, and 30 years ago we stuck our toe in the water by putting our first [Star Wars] attraction here, it just seemed fitting that in a place like the U.S., where the depth of Star Wars love is just so incredible, that this would be the perfect place to do something really ambitious. I think there are other places we could put Star Wars attractions; I’m not sure there’s other places that would warrant a land that’s this robust with that kind of level of investment. And to us, it’s all about exceeding our guests’ expectations. And whether it’s Anaheim or it’s Orlando, I think we’ve probably done that, so I think it was a good investment.

It’s interesting, we have eleven one-billion-dollar-or-more consumer products franchises in terms of retail sales. Eleven of ‘em. And that’s that portfolio that we can draw upon. By bringing these business units together it enables us to tell stories, and to act as a catalyst for further storytelling in the world of publishing, games, and even merchandise outside the berm, if you will, in a much greater way. You know, we have millions of people that see movies – our movies, our Star Wars movies, our Marvel movies, all the time. And that’s always been a catalyst for our activities outside the berm. But we’ve never really thought about a theme park as a catalyst for those things as well. But if you think about it, millions of people see those movies, we have millions of people who walk through these gates 365 days a year on both coasts. That in itself is a catalyst for further storytelling.

Maybe the most important thing about what we’re doing here is that we all live within the world of the canon of Star Wars. But we’re not constrained by the stories that have been told only to date. This [land] is another venue for storytelling. This is another blank canvas. And we’ve already created seven or eight different publishing products based on the backstory of the Black Spire Outpost. So it’s already happening – much like Pirates of the Caribbean seeded the movie franchise, or in many cases like the great Avengers movies have really helped us create Marvel-based superhero attractions in our parks as well. It’s very symbiotic. Well this place itself is about to launch a whole bunch of fantastic content for the Walt Disney Company based on the mythologies that we’re creating. So we’re working with Lucas very carefully to make sure that we stay within that mythology. But at the same time, we have many degrees of freedom to create our own story. You see Hondo Ohnaka, right? – who greets you at the beginning of Millennium Falcon. Certainly, Hondo was a more or less obscure character, but now he’s got his own story, right? Smuggler’s Run. Where’s that going to go? Stay tuned.

We all have a North Star and we all paddle in the same direction, right? -- to get to that North Star, if you will. And we’re not [ ? ]. We’re like this [interlaces fingers] with our friends at Marvel. We’re like this [interlaces fingers] with our friends at Pixar. We’re like this [interlaces fingers] with our friends at Lucas. Because we’re all about storytelling. We do it in a physical way. We like to say we’re the physical manifestation of the magic. And we extend storytelling by doing so. And they respect that. Matter of fact, I had dinner last night with Kathleen Kennedy and we talked about how great the partnership has gone for the last five years, from the inception of the idea that “hey, maybe we should do something like this” to what it actually sort of turned out to be. And I think the proof is in what you all see and will experience over the next days, weeks, months, years. But we all have the same goals in mind. Because at Disney, it’s not about an individual operating unit, it’s about the brand – first of all the brand, the Disney brand, and then all those great franchises that fit underneath it.

Look, we’ve got the wealth of riches. We’ve got an embarrassment of riches. And we don’t want to do anything that anybody else can do, okay? A lot of times people say “well why don’t you, y’know, do something, why does everything have to be franchise-oriented?” Because that’s our barrier to entry. Because if any of our competitors had our intellectual property, guess what they would be doing? The exact same thing they’re doing we’re doing. But they don’t have it and we do. So we’re going to build it, we’re going to sustain it, we’re going to create this world where everybody works together to create storytelling across time, across territories and geographies, and across lines of business, to create something that’s bigger than any one of those individual pieces. And that’s why we have a franchise orientation – and frankly that’s why the Walt Disney Company far and away outperforms all of our peers.

We have not done anything on this scale. Certainly we have several [ ? ], but done over different time frames, certainly not of this magnitude. For our shareholder constituents, there’s a benefit there, where you sign once, build twice. Essentially this land is exactly the same as the one at Hollywood Studios, just essentially turned upside-down with two entrances rather than three. So there’s obviously some efficiency there. But the other thing it helps us do is that as we’re creating science, as we’re innovating, as we’re inventing, we don’t have to go through those, you know, perils and tribulations twice. We figure it out here, we export it over to Orlando. And that just helps everybody get more Star Wars, quicker, in a way that’s going to be incredibly reliable, and in a way that I think’s going to really build a franchise again.

[OFFSCREEN VOICE: “Smart and fun.”]

CHAPEK: Yeah, I tell you, it’s a dream come true. This place is just amazing. Our guests, ultimately, though; it’s not about what we think, it’s really about what our guests en masse think. And if our demand on our parks is any indication, we’ve got way more demand than we’ve got supply, so we’re doing something right.

You can break down, you know, the facades, the buildings, the food, beverage, the merchandise, the cast. But what it really comes down to is that word: emotion. You really have to touch somebody within their soul that speaks to them, whether it’s because of the first time they saw the movie when they were young or some more recent experience that they’ve had. But it has to play into that world of theirs. And that’s why our marketing tagline for the land is “Live your own Star Wars adventure.” Because it really is about striking that chord of emotion.

One of my favorite things – it’s actually a soft programming thing, it’s not an imaginary thing – it’s the cast. Because I don’t know if you’ve figured this out yet, but each cast member was asked to come up with their own backstory – why they’re here, what their origin is, what their problem is. So each cast member has created their own story. So that adds yet another dimension. Because everything we’ve talked about so far is really all about the land, right? And the programming of the land. But when you talk to the cast, you get all these different layers. And to me, that’s really what takes this – as always, it’s always about the cast, right? – they take it over the top.

The way I look at this land, is that it’s a canvas. And it’s a canvas that we painted. And it’s a core. We don’t have any specific plans as to where this is going to go. Because frankly we haven’t even opened it up. We don’t open it up for another 36 hours. But I think you can see that this could be the core of something really, really spectacular. Because our ambition hasn’t gone away, our ambition’s only growing. I’m not exactly sure what form that’s going to take; I know most immediately the form that it’s going to take, and that’s Rise of the Resistance, which I again believe will be the greatest attraction that we’ve ever built. But beyond that we’ve got no specific plans. But we have a lot of ambition, a lot of dreams, and plenty of stories to tell.

[Blurr]

"Look, we’ve got the wealth of riches. We’ve got an embarrassment of riches. And we don’t want to do anything that anybody else can do, okay? A lot of times people say “well why don’t you, y’know, do something, why does everything have to be franchise-oriented?” Because that’s our barrier to entry. Because if any of our competitors had our intellectual property, guess what they would be doing? The exact same thing they’re doing we’re doing. But they don’t have it and we do. So we’re going to build it, we’re going to sustain it, we’re going to create this world where everybody works together to create storytelling across time, across territories and geographies, and across lines of business, to create something that’s bigger than any one of those individual pieces. And that’s why we have a franchise orientation – and frankly that’s why the Walt Disney Company far and away outperforms all of our peers."

Oh, shut up. Just shut up.

[Mr Wiggins]

Oh, shut up. Just shut up.

I'll see your Wealth of Riches... and raise you eleven One-Billion-Dollar Consumer Product Franchises and two Growing Ambitions.

[spfalla]

Oh, shut up. Just shut up.

As much as Bob annoys me i don't see anything wrong with this. Disney isn't going to last rehashing Snow White and when they do make a successful IP like Frozen people just roll their eyes. Marvel and Star Wars are the modern day fairy tales. The only problem Disney has is a quality standard right now. If they give these IPs the disney quality they deserve i dont see a problem with them being in the park.

[Blurr]

As much as Bob annoys me i don't see anything wrong with this. Disney isn't going to last rehashing Snow White and when they do make a successful IP like Frozen people just roll their eyes. Marvel and Star Wars are the modern day fairy tales. The only problem Disney has is a quality standard right now. If they give these IPs the disney quality they deserve i dont see a problem with them being in the park.

The issue here isn't IPs not having a place in the park, they very clearly do have a time and a place (heck, even Walt had a handful of them in Fantasyland upon opening). The issue here is Chapek saying that IPs are the ONLY recipe for success. That when asked why they don't build more original attractions like Haunted Mansion or Pirates of the Caribbean, he basically responds with "well this is what our competitors would do and that has been a financially successful strategy so we're just going to be sticking with that".

Then, the icing on the cake; he decides to use the word "ambitious". Galaxy's Edge, Pandora, Carsland, etc. are all beautifully constructed and modern marvels in their own right but anyone who believes that buying up an already popular product then building a land without having to truly "create" or "imagine" for yourself is an "ambitious" thing to do is absolutely kidding themselves. Lots of hard work went into their construction, this I know but there is nothing inherently "ambitious" about a Star Wars-land. It's a no brainer that any fan off the street could have told you would make money and be successful.

It's disappointing to see Disney making so much money and then not taking a risk here and there with at least a handful of the profits. Or trying to create something original and using Imagineering to it's full extent to create something incredible and remind everyone what set them apart from other parks to begin with. To remind all who visit that they are truly ahead of the curve. Not just in technology or profits but in creativity and imagination, too.

[Laugh-O-Grams]

...beautifully constructed and modern marvels in their own right but anyone who believes that buying up an already popular product then building a land without having to truly "create" or "imagine" for yourself is an "ambitious" thing to do is absolutely kidding themselves.

In the Film industry it's called a "Practical Set"

[Blurr]

In the Film industry it's called a "Practical Set"

I too, have been on the Universal Studios Tram Tour more times than I care to count.

(EDIT: I realize after reading this again that it could come off like an insult XD it isn't supposed to be!)

[brian11811]

I’ll play devils advocate. When they get money, they can build a couple of billion dollar lands (Cars Land, Star Wars land) for us to play in. If you have a 401k through work, or an IRA (Anyone can get an ira through your bank or etrade), put $50 a month into an s&p 500 fund and you get a chunk of Disney. Go on rides and have fun...

Damn, I just realized I’m old and sound just like my Dad.

[denyuntilcaught]

He's a terrible face of the brand. Where's the publicist holding him back?

[CM.X777]

I’ll play devils advocate. When they get money, they can build a couple of billion dollar lands (Cars Land, Star Wars land) for us to play in..

That's the catch tho. Under Chapek we won't get anything like these lands again. All signs are pointing to cheap, and quick turn around projects.

Edit: Oh and the part where he says "as always, it’s always about the cast, right?" what a load of bull. That SOB is directly responsible for some hardships CMs face, and an increasing reason that CMs get treated like disposable drones, instead of people that have a passion for what they do.

[Laugh-O-Grams]

I too, have been on the Universal Studios Tram Tour more times than I care to count.

(EDIT: I realize after reading this again that it could come off like an insult XD it isn't supposed to be!)

Didn't take it that way. My point was along your train of thought regarding "ambitious". Disney is basically building off of someone else's creativity. Lucasfilm did all the creativity years before.

[Quentin]

So to recap... Iger hires Eisner's Chief Financial Officer, Tom Staggs, to run Disney Parks... Staggs greenlights Avatarland and Star Wars Land... Iger later kicks Staggs out and hires Bob Chapek from Consumer Products to replace him... Chapek reskins the Tower of Terror, greenlights Summer of Heroes, slashes Staggs' Star Wars Land budget, AND becomes the PR spokesman for the new Star Wars Land, as if it had been his idea all along... while at the same time blueprints are revealed of Chapek's next cheapout, a TSMM-style clone for a Spiderman ride.

You can't make this stuff up, folks.

Which baffles me because any Spider-Man ride is going to be compared to the one at Universal Orlando which is incredible. So why they’d cheap out and make a purposely less exciting ride rather than try and actually one-up Universal is mind boggling.

[matterhorn77]

Didn't take it that way. My point was along your train of thought regarding "ambitious". Disney is basically building off of someone else's creativity. Lucasfilm did all the creativity years before.

To be fair Disney has been doing this since the beginning. Snow White, Pinocchio, Peter Pan.... none of these are Disney originals. I understand both sides of the love/hate for Chapeck. Yes this was green lit before his got his position but it was created during his watch and from what I’m hearing it sounds like a smash hit so far. I know he’s a numbers crunching, pie chart studying profit driven guy. But I don’t mind that as long as what he’s putting out works. Yes Pixar pier is “Meh”. But it was always Meh. Well before he came along. Changing the theming was never gonna get anyone excited but what we’re rhey gonna do? Tear it down and rebuild it? It’s literally stuck in a corner and to close all of those attractions to build something better would flood the rest of the parks worse then they already are. Changing TOT to guardians... yeah that sucks. However we know that that whole corner of DCA is gonna become Marvel land so I get it. However they could have told everyone then that that was the future plan. (And maybe wait to change it till the rest of the area is changed too) but then you have another situation where a big people eater ride is down for a long period of time crowding the rest of the park. There will never be a win win solution.
IP seems to be a four letter word with a lot of fans. But IP has always been a thing with the Disney parks. I for one at least like that Disney is flat out buying the IP’s to make them their own as opposed to places like universal who has warner brothers, paramount, and other non Universal IP’s to attract guests. That always seems weird to me. Like it or not IP is the name of the game now. And you can blame Netflix for it not Disney. Now EVERYONE is creating their own streaming service to go directly to the consumer instead of going through cable or satellite suppliers. Netflix is paying 100 million dollars A YEAR just to stream Friends. When Disney+ comes out it will own ALL of its content and not have to pay anyone for it. Everyone else is following suits but they will have to rely on creating original IP’s to hopefully be something that lasts. Disney doesn’t have to gamble as hard cause they have hundreds of properties to rely on while they create new ones.
I kinda got off topic there...sorry. Lol.
Basically I don’t mind using IP’s in the park as long as they’re done well. And so far they are. And if chapeck screws up he’ll be out on his butt faster than he can say zip-pity do dah. And someone maybe better will come in to fix it. Disney has shown that they have no problem redoing something if it doesn’t work (original DCA) we haven’t seen anything yet under his watch that has gone from idea/concept to reality yet have we? (Seriously asking. Can’t think of anything)
Yeah. He’s too into money and profits and and focus’s too much on how his new job affect his old one. (And has anyone noticed how he tries to dress just like Igor? Lol!) but so far under his watch we’ve gotten some pretty cool stuff globally. Better than what we got from many before him.
........I feel like I’m defending him? Lol. Not what I intended to do. Lol